


Love Hues

by meiqis



Category: NINE PERCENT (Band), 偶像练习生 | Idol Producer (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - The Little Mermaid Fusion, M/M, Unspecified Setting, some descriptions of pains but not of violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-07
Updated: 2019-08-07
Packaged: 2020-08-11 15:08:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 42,973
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20155606
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/meiqis/pseuds/meiqis
Summary: Prince of the sea Zhengting had too much of an interest in the human world. Saving one specific human prince from drowning maybe did not exactly counterbalance this fascination of his.





	Love Hues

**Author's Note:**

> I remember I had a lot of thoughts about this while writing and surely half of them are lost in time but the most important is  
** I blame Joey and [her tweet](https://twitter.com/wangziyee/status/1150687747868418048?s=19) for this**
> 
> First of all, I didn't write any Zhengyi in what feels like eternity and when I started this, I never quite expected it to be this long, and I'm sure I went out of character way too often but I still hope it will be enjoyable to read
> 
> Thanks to some curiouscat anons ([example a](https://curiouscat.me/dadting/post/931026113) and [example b](https://curiouscat.me/dadting/post/931488727)) I couldn't decide on his looks but you better keep [this](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Dh-D4KQW4AAtbLv.jpg) and [this](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DfQLkIUUwAEjzKN.jpg) in mind while reading
> 
> Then also, I'm certain I did not do the descriptions any justice so go with your own fantasies? And while I did not decide on any location to base this on, I had some memories of the Disney movies still, and some stuff was inspired by my most recent vacation in Venice so my respect to those who recognize the elements. Aside from that, I never used quite as many characters in a story before, so if I messed anyone up, please don't hesitate in giving me some constructive critics because the least I could do is portray them better if I ever use them again?
> 
> Without further ado, I hope some of you actually manage to reach the end of this (where I put some more funny anecdotes) and if you spot any typos? keep them, they're free of charge  
ps: because this work is way longer than what I'm used to, I changed the editing but **are y'all aware how long this took me omg** my html times were supposed to end with my tumblr times lmao

There were a lot of sparkly things beneath the sea: the pearls held by clams, the shells that needed only the slightest of polishes, little rocks and germs burnished by the sand and minerals, fish with their beautiful tails and fins. All of them unique in their own way, shimmering, shifting, a varsity of color intermingling in a way that could not be imitated by mere hands. Shining beneath the sunrays hitting below the ocean surface, glinting, glimmering. Like the tail of his younger brother in front of him.  
  
With a yell Zhengting backtracked some inches to avoid getting hit by Justin’s greenish golden scales or pinnae because no matter how thin the skin at their lower ends could be, it was quite sturdy nonetheless and thus also quite hurtful to get slapped by. But all such thought was taken from him when instead of iridescent green some mischievous eyes were occupying his field of vision, the very same shade of the younger’s fishy scales, interlaced with golden sparks that seemed surprisingly dull in comparison to gleaming yellowish strands of hair. Sometimes their dad would joke he wasn’t sure whether to have slept with Justin’s mother or a piece of jewelry to receive a son like this. So much was quite understandable, because any of them - even Zhengting himself - would agree the baby of their family was the most beautiful of them all.  
  
“What’s this?” His younger brother asked, eyes big and bright while holding up a piece of silver, looking a bit like their father’s so dangerous but treasured triton. Just… it was smaller. Way smaller. Some inch longer than Justin’s tiny and squishy hands so it didn’t look much like a weapon and even the ends, when the older took it and lightly poked it against his palm, were dull, too dull to be considered dangerous. At least not for them, but he had heard that humans were way slower to them, lacking their sort of reflexes, speed, strength. In short, humans were weaker and thus sometimes easy prey. Had been; decades or centuries ago when hunting humans had been the way to save themselves, to protect their kind they had to eliminate those getting too close, install fear in their enemies before they got too close. But humans had stopped looking for them and the Sea King had decided to keep their existence a secret, stay hidden below because they did not know how far those walking mortals had progressed, how much of a danger they could have become.  
  
Naturally, curiosity was intrinsic to their kind, or maybe just to him, the need to see them, find out what they all were about, what their tools were about, what made them so different aside from the very difference in physiology. Yet there were limits, restrictions of what they could do, what they were allowed to do. Such as the interactions, their little times of watching and observing, it was to gauge the risk and nothing ever else, blessing each citizen with only one day a year to go up to the surface, to watch a ship from afar or approach a shore, they were told never to stray too far lest they get caught in their act and only so much could be blamed on hallucinations, sickness, whatever other inebriated state.  
  
Since the first time he had found one of these tools, it had itched him deep within his bones to figure out these humans, get closer, talk to them, interact with them, but in his case, it had been a matter of impossibility. “Don’t get too close - ever! You’re the next to wear the crown, you can’t mingle with them or reveal our kingdom,” his father had always said in that sort of tone that just invited Zhengting to mock him but then he looked at this tiny spear, how it glimmered in the sun, reflecting the light in a beautiful way, and he couldn’t ever understand why his father was so scared. Why this all was supposed to be such a big deal when those were just… humans.  
  
“Maybe it’s for the hair? It looks like a comb,” a voice from below them pointed out, two sets of eyes darting down towards the hermit crab on the ground beneath them, shell of translucent white with only the tiniest hint of emerald, it had been no surprise their Little Ghost had been treated as an outsider by their own kind. But to them, to Justin and his shenanigans and to Zhengting and his secret collection, the pincered animal had proven to be quite a great friend.  
  
Such was enough of a prompt to lure their youngest into trying it out, baby like hands reaching forth to snatch the metal from calloused hands and carefully plunge them into his golden curls, moving through them easily albeit the angle seemed somewhat off. Maybe humans didn’t really mind that? He didn’t know, had no way of knowing, and such frustration was released with a heavy sigh as he slowly sank down to the ground, resting his arms on a protruding stone and his chin on top, ignoring the seaweed tickling his skin. Similarly as he was ignored by his two friends, merely sharing a look from some feet above him, where his cave was more illuminated than down below, and then rolling their eyes as if on cue.  
  
More than twenty years of his life he had spent down below the surface, intrigue cut off despite his better wants for his fathers protective spirit and yet all he wanted was to go up, experience it at least once in his life, what it would be like to walk on two legs rather than swim with a tail, what human food differentiated itself from merfood, how their language sounded in comparison to theirs, what the animals up there looked like: would they also walk on two legs? similarly as the fish were swimming like the merfolk? or where there some that resembled their walking inhabitants, like the crabs as Linkai was one?  
  
There were so many questions unanswered that he couldn’t help ponder, because as many things as he had found on his travels down in the sea, none of them could have given him an image of what actually took place up there. Not even the boats he was allowed to look at, only ever saw their shadows from down below or from a far distance, massive buildings of wood with some fabric hung up for whatever reason he hadn’t been able to figure out until he was told it was to catch the wind to move the enormous mass, too high up to properly get caught in the streams of the sea and with tail that would propel them forward with sheer force as their tails did.  
  
“Ya, Zhengting!” Justin’s voice startled him out of his little murky reveries, drawing his attention towards further up in his place of little treasures only to realize with a startle that already the water around them had darkened, indicating the sun going down. Not that it bothered their kind, he had been told humans couldn’t see in the dark so they needed artificial light - some red thing called fire that was supposedly pretty warm but could also be hurtful, a sort of little brother to their springs of hot water with glowing red ember deep down the cracks in the ground - but to them, although they used illuminations in form of bioluminescent crystals, it seemed unnecessary, equipped with perfect sight even in the darkest and deepest spots of the seas. “Dad will get angry if we’re late for dinner again!”  
  
Such was enough to speed him out of his drowsy position, not wanting to anger their father all over again, not when the last time he had been yelled for what felt like half the night, belittled for his interest in humane life above and their little tools and artifacts that sank to the low of their realm, forbidden to leave the palace for days and nights to come until his father had judged it sufficient of a punishment and released him again. Had it been only more lessons with the teachers or to be forbidden from playing with friends, he could have dealt with it easily but the mere thought of being restricted, caught or trapped…  
  
Behind him, he could hear Justin yelling and laughing for him to stop or slow down but the crown prince didn’t listen, wanting to be in time and enjoying the rush of the water against his frame, moving in a speed deserving of calling him one of the fastest of their kingdom. He hadn’t slowed down even as he moved past the city gates, hearing the rushed exclamations of the guards while he swam up and up until he was above the houses and therefore able to take the direct route towards the tower that marked the center of town and the core of his home. It was a beautiful sight, as much he could say without thought, architecture inspired by spiral shells and the crown a plateau surrounded by crystals so may those who had lost their way always find back home at night.  
  
It was this tower he was headed for, aiming for the bottom of it and the close by banqueting hall that hosted his brothers, sisters, stepmothers and father for the two grand meals of the day, clamor easily reaching out from in there as they all talked in chaotic ways to be heard by whoever they each were talking to. As long as the room was still filled with such volume, dinner had not yet started, reassuring him in his wake as he slipped in from one of the gates and drifted over to his place closer to the head of it, as was supposed to be his place as one of the oldest of them. At least his rank was highest, the closest to the crown when the only ones older than him had all, each in their own way, declined such title.  
  
Sometimes he wanted to resent Yixuan, supposed to take their father’s throne in some years originally, after doing some training in the military, but that joke had been on Zhengting because his eldest brother had ended up feeling so comfortable there, adopting all the recruits as if they were sons, he had ended up deciding on sticking with their military defenses rather than politics. Emphasis on wanted, because even though the current crown prince wished to not carry such title, his brother had always taken care of him too well to deserve any sort of ill feelings. Then there was Sungjoo who was just… well, nobody knew exactly where he was, had just packed some things and decided to travel the world while it had still been Yixuan with a future crown painted onto him, and only sometimes would they get message of their second oldest doing well in whatever part of the oceans. Which left only Wenhan but in a way, that one of his brothers had already succeeded: fallen in love, married, and now carried the crown of another kingdom.  
  
All in all, Zhengting felt happy for his brothers having found their ways but sometimes he considered following their trails, also end up as the one to hand down the crown to the next in line, not wanting to carry the pressure but even less wanting to put such weight onto his younger brothers’ shoulders. For a moment he glimpsed at Xuanyi opposite him, craving the freedom that would allow him to pass the title on to his sister instead but a queen would only be accepted next to a king, which seemed ironic, after all their older brother had married another man too…  
  
His gaze didn’t linger for long, instead distracted by the arrival of their father coming from work and settling at the top of their table, too close to Zhengting for comfort when excitement was still bubbling within his chest after his last finding when so well aware of how much his father disdained it, the only border being his and Sungjoo’s mom seated in between, along the length of the table. Not to be misunderstood, he loved his father, a kind man and generous king, but that didn’t mean that they were on the same wavelength at all times, couldn’t agree on every topic of life and sometimes it strained their relationship more than was doing them good. Despite all that, there was no doubt in the king’s authority, merely needing to enter the hall to quiet all talks and discussions, banter replaced by silence as they waited for their father to wave in the waiters to serve their dinner and allow them to continue to fool around on lower volume. 

  


｡･:*:･ﾟ’★,｡･:*:･ﾟ’☆

  


“Zhengting?” A soft voice called from outside after a soft knock had resounded against his door, startling him from his state of actually not sleeping despite knowing better to. He felt restless this night, tense and on the brink of… whatever. Unfortunately, it wasn’t a feeling that was new to him for it had already become too much of a steady companion ahead of big celebrations, such as was the one of his father’s birthday scheduled for the next afternoon.  
  
He only released a low hum in response but was fortunate enough for the soundwaves to carry throughout the room and down into the hall, allowing his visitor to glide in and close the door after her. Cheng Xiao didn’t hesitate in moving over and settling onto bed next to him, falling onto his bed with her back to look up at the ceiling decorated by shells and glowing crystals that made it look like the starry sky so far out of their reach. Back then, the two of them had decorated his ceiling together, then hers some while after, and when a teeny tiny Justin had asked for the same, they had done it too. Between the Justin and him, too, she seemed like a perfect interlude, carrying the same softly shaded type of hair as he did, a faded lilac on his crown while hers was shining like the Caribbean seas, but her tail was more like Justin’s, a brilliant teal with a sheen of silver rather than intense green and gold. The similarity remained undeniable.  
  
In general, sometimes he felt like an outcast within his family, most of them carrying an intense color of tail, courtesy of their father and his royal blue scales, but hardly anyone carried the faint and iridescent hue he did, color looking faded and washed out, a pearly lilac shell rather than an intimidating creature of the sea. Thinking of it, he whipped his tail’s end up to watch how the colors shifted in the dim light only to settle with the realization that, yes, he really was the odd one out in his family. Or maybe he had just taken too much after his mother, a rare beauty known for looking like a ghost, the faintest of colors in her hair and tail, an outcast to many but to his father she had apparently been one of the most beautiful females he had ever seen.  
  
Actually, theirs had been one sweet story he had never gotten to be tired of, such tale betraying their age but it was no doubt true. In a time of merfolk still being more endangered by humans than at current date, his mother had been trapped in some fishers’ net, put to show like a statue rather than treated as the alive being she was. His father had been still young, venturing out and about, when he had heard of a mermaid trapped, and promptly set out to save her. It seemed like hypocrisy now, his own father, the king, despite his immature age, had so recklessly gone out to save one of his own kind but his own son was forbidden from even coming close to waves starting to break against impending shores.  
  
Long story short, his father had saved his mother, freed her from evil clutches and brought her back to the sea. For a long while they had lost track of each other, for she had been so desperate to find her family again but in the end, all trace of home she had known was their very kingdom, her own clan annihilated or broken up, all trace of them lost. His father had never forgotten her, but as a king and a ruler, he had already taken a wife, or, well, three by then. It might sound weird to some, the limitless love their folk was able to give but as long as there was no trouble, jealousy or fight it was not frowned upon. At first, it must have irritated his mother, but if he looked at her now, no trace of such was seen, getting along with all the other women of their household and looking so perfectly content by his side.  
  
Taking such story into consideration, he could never actually hate his father, their king was after all a great man. It just didn’t change that their views were too different and slowly he was getting tired for being called out on better stopping his pubescent behavior pattern and to grow up. Things might have changed over the years and decades, including his father’s views, but why did he have to be the one suffering this fate of discrepancy and pain?  
  
His struggle must have been evident on his face all over again, as proven by the hand caressing his shoulder gently, easier access for his sister who had turned onto her side. “It’s that time of the year again, isn’t it? Is it becoming difficult with father again?”  
  
This time of the year. Also known as a mess of important dates and clashing opinions. Within a few weeks it would be his father’s birthday, his parents’ marriage anniversary, and the day of his annual visit to the surface, always on the same date on which sparkling flowers would be blooming in the sky, supposedly some sort of magic practiced by humans, and laced into all this was the tension of their recurring topic of fights. If only he could visit for one day, he would already be satisfied, just one day among the humans he could walk amongst in secret thanks to his father’s magic. Also one day that was one too much for his father, who was still hung up on the terror humans could instill within their kind and all the risks and dangers it brought along.  
  
“He’s been giving me the stinky eye for days now, Xiao,” he reminded his sister, and that kind of gaze was nearly as exhausting as the scolding and yelling but all the more unsettling because he couldn’t even properly react to it. It was one thing no one could ignore, so he was quite certain his sister had taken note of it since a while too, not like it could be missed during breakfast or dinner anyways. “And he’s made mom try to talk me out of it all over again too… As if even just looking at them would be enough to get me pressed into a cage or killed!”  
  
“Zheng…” He could hear the exasperation in her sigh, knew her point of view was not so much unlike their father’s, albeit a bit more subdued. They were obedient children, all of them, and in that matter he felt proud of them, just… sometimes he wished they were all a bit more accepting like Justin, or that he wouldn’t be on the end of his own mother’s gaze, showing an expression he couldn’t decipher nor sort at all, and sometimes he felt like not even his father could. “If you really want to do this, no one of us will stop you but… be careful, okay? One of Wenhan’s folk nearly got captured a while ago and it probably set father off even more than usual.”  
  
Her eyes weren’t unkind, so it was hard not to be lenient with her, despite what she said, the hidden aversion to his plans. Maybe aside from their father she was one of the few people who actually were able to talk sense into him, on those rare times it was needed. Because all too often they were still similar in their approach, in interest, opinion - all but this one topic that seemed to scare everyone but him. Like a secret nobody had let him in on.  
  
“I know,” he tried to smile, doing his best to show her a kind expression in return as he settled a bit deeper into bed, curling up in a way it mirrored hers, tips of their tails touching at the end of the soft surface and swaying in the same tact as if conversing. It was like holding hands, but he wasn’t against that either, so he reached up to link their fingers as he asked, “Will you stay the night? I don’t think I can rest otherwise…”  
  
The simple smile she gave him in response was all he actually needed to allow himself to close his eyes in peace, actually trying to sleep now that he had found a bit solace and received some warm words on top. 

  


｡･:*:･ﾟ’★,｡･:*:･ﾟ’☆

  


Objectively speaking, his father’s birthday event was one giant festival spread throughout the city, both impressive and full of enjoyments, traders with beautifully crafted art coming from all over the oceans, always around to use the great all about to their advantage, games from different places played, little treats that weren’t so usual prepared for this day. Zhengting’s favorite had most definitely been the sugary seaweed handled and treated until they were no thicker than a hair, rolled up and stuffed into empty shells to enjoy as little snack. Thanks to how it wasn’t exactly easy to produce, it wasn’t a craft that was known within their kingdom but most definitely at Wenhan’s, and considering how even his older brother had shown up for this celebration, it was no surprise some of his traders had done so as well.  
  
The festivities had still been going strong at their usual time of dinner, enjoyed within their family’s bond as they all cheered onto their father and king but now, hours later, when the city looked still brighter than usual thanks to colorful crystals having been placed around, he found himself unable to rest as he looked down at the streets splayed out beneath his window. If only he allowed his vision to blur with unfocused mind, he could imagine those were the blooming flowers of fire he had seen in the skies thanks to human celebrations and soon as memory of those hit him, his gaze traveled far up towards the darkness of the sea above. He didn’t need to see it, could feel it within the streams of the ocean, the storm that must be going on up there but hardly ever affected them in their protected little valley.  
  
It would be so easy, while everyone was still distracted, when no human would be crazy enough to venture out into the vast sea with such weather… Before he had finished such train of thought, he already found himself swimming up, up and further up, breaching the force of the water going this way and that, building up speed until he had half his body catapulted out of the water and into the streaming rain, hair looking dark when even the moon was but a far away light, his tail hardly visible within the dark forces of the wet body posing as his home.  
  
Fresh air, heavy from the rain and perfectly moist, felt like a sweet treat to his watered lungs, mixed races of earthbound and waterborne animals easily allowing him to survive both on the dry and wet, as long as he was not desiccated there was no danger for him from any of these surroundings. For a moment he just allowed himself to take it all in, the water drops hitting his hair and skin from above, the wind driving the waves crazy, making them surge and crash, topple over and yet it seemed so perfectly easy to him to still stay afloat despite of strands of hair getting whipped around his face and hitting his skin as wet mass. Under these conditions, with so much going on down below and up above, he was certain no one would assume him here, breaching the surface they were not allowed to approach, not when even traveling was supposed to be done within the secrecy of schools of sharks and fish, the careful guard of dolphins or just sticking close to the ground.  
  
So gauge his surprise when in the far distance he could see a faint light, the flickering hues that were most definitely not affiliated to the beam of light they sometimes saw at night, from what his teacher had been saying to be a tower that warned ships of solid ground, having them avoid such place to not crash their ships. Even if he focused enough, he could be certain there was a faint trace of voices to be heard that had him ducking under water but, much rather than getting away, back into the safety of his home, he approached the spot he had seen the light coming from, wanting to make sure he saw it right, that this was actually a ship full of people driven mad by the urges to venture the sea. At this distance already could he hear their screams and shouts, about sails and some prince and- Wait, a prince?  
  
Zhengting’s eyes widened at such expression, surely was he aware of human language as he had been taught at times, a skill long vanished but fascinating nonetheless. The thought had no time to settle within his mind as he was disturbed by a loud crack of the skies and a flash going down not far from him, white light hitting the highest fin of the ship that seemed to burst into white and red, fire that went against the forces of the rain and, as the heavy wooden frame broke down, it caused damage to the whole ship. Too much went on all at once, waves towering higher and then, just as the merman thought it was all over and the ship was safe and sound, one final wave engulfed it from above. 

  


｡･:*:･ﾟ’★,｡･:*:･ﾟ’☆

  


If someone had asked him to retell exactly what had happened just a while ago, he wasn’t certain he’d be able to answer as much, unable to piece all parts of this story together but one thing was certain, he hadn’t been able to just leave them to die. At first he had wanted to follow his father, despite his better knowledge, he had gone up, he had broken a law, and the realization of such had startled him enough to be struck by a flash of lightning of fear himself. But as he had headed down, towards where the currents weren’t as strong, he had had one realization - who would save them? Wasn’t it more important to save even just a single life, no matter what race, than to abide some regulations set by his father to protect lives? Even if right then it would be his against theirs, no one would believe someone coming back from a storm, right?  
  
And that’s why now there he was, with one of those legged beings he had found resting half on top of a piece of wood, making it easier for Zhengting to pull the man along as he could just hold the board and slowly swim them to the shore he could barely even see. While the storm had let up by now, coming hard but going fast on the open sea, it was still nighttime and thus the sky was dark, the moon sparing him most of the light on his way that proved trouble to be seen even with his enhanced senses. So far it had been a silent journey, the human was still out good albeit undoubtedly living as to be judged by one heaving chest and the heavy thump of a heartbeat that would so easily go strong followed by soft, beating at least double as fast as his own. It would be worrisome, would this man not simply look happily sleeping, no sign of being unwell, making his current state way less concerning. There was no blood, no seen wound, no sound. He seemed okay.  
  
A little chirp from right beside him made him look at a shiny gray dolphin, still small in size so it couldn’t be old, eyes so bright and curious and looking just about to start a conversation were it not for its mother calling him over it. He still couldn’t help himself from sending a wave over towards their family, receiving happy flips and some splashing waves in return before they went down under again. It had been some sweet delight, a second of looking such juvenile freedom and intrigue as he knew it only from his own youngest siblings otherwise but then again, having been spotted by one of their kind with a human in literal tow heightened the risk of getting exposed to his father… Silently he hoped this little thing wouldn’t end up traveling towards their kingdom and spill some secrets.  
  
Before he could think different of it, he called out to them again, waiting for one of the group to rise above sea level to reply in a repetitive click, which was pretty much a way to ask about what was up. “The shore,” he called out, yelling loud enough to have them hear the sound of his voice and this time the reply came in form of the mammal shooting up and then dropping its weight into one direction. The one he’d have to follow.  
  
Despite the interaction having been short, it felt as if it had replenished all his strengths, surging forward with more force again towards where he had to go. Much like the human’s heart beat way faster than his, though, his speed was cut down a fair amount, always having to watch whether the clothed body was still on top of the board because when he had first taken off, his grip on the wood firm and sturdy, the human, lacking such, had slid off, and it had taken quite some time to figure out just what speed was still bearable to move with lest he’d lose the walking creature.  
  
Which added to the reason as to why, while usually the land would not be quite as far away from their home, it had taken him half of night to see the faintest light of their city settled higher up on a cliff, paths leading down towards the port, some structures with ropes hanging down towards the harbor, and then, on the other side of the trading point, the shingle beach spread out bare, void of human life and thus making it safer for Zhengting to steer that direction. Some boulders further hid him from sight, just in case he’d miss out on a stray human going out when the sun had barely kissed the horizon in greeting, dying the skies beautiful shades of white and faint yellow, transcending into lighter blue and the near black on the other side. It was mesmerizing, a sight he could only wish to see more often, but as currently stood, he could only drag the board with the human as far up the shallow water as he possibly could.  
  
The water, crystal clear and a perfect teal, reminding him of his favorite sister at home, barely even covered half of his tail at this point as he made sure the human’s head was resting on the wooden board to prevent him from drowning. Even dragged as far as possible, he wasn’t able to pull the limp body entirely out of the wet, it would only hinder his own chances of getting away once humans showed up to save their companion, so the least he could do was make sure breathing was no longer hindered when already had he saved the stranger from shipwreck. Once certain nothing more could go wrong, he moved his fingers to brush jet black hair out of the human’s face, strands the exact shade of the ink released by squids whenever they, as the horrible children they had been, scared them into releasing it. But whereas ink he hadn’t been able to touch, sometimes staining his skin when driving through it but always getting washed away by the water before it’d remain for long, the hair he was currently feeling felt awfully soft, silky like some of the algae he knew but not as slick, the deep hue unlike what he was used to after seeing his colorful family and their more often than not shifting hues.  
  
The human’s skin felt the same as his own, at least when it wasn’t wet from the water, but whereas his flesh was still plump and taut, the earthbound’s had gone wrinkly in places, looking like nothing he had ever seen on another creature, fascinating and funny to touch as he rubbed his fingers against those wrinkly hands. Only the softest flick of theirs had him startled and quickly his sight rose to the human’s face, his own wide eyes met with infinitely dark black eyes barely revealed in such dizzy state and immediately falling close again. This time around he didn’t allow himself to get distracted as he had his sight travel over these unknown structures, that all seemed to be cut so perfectly straight.  
  
His touch lingered as his knuckles traced along the chiseled jaw, a definite line even when tucked in as currently, feeling the strong bone underneath, up to lips looking dry, cracked and colored lighter from salt but perfectly plush, giving way to his fingers that remained stuck right there, watching the human mouth open, teeth that weren’t sharp like his own revealed. The human’s nose too, straight, narrow, it was just short off being cute with its soft tip that made him want to boop it but despite it all, he found those eyes had been the most enticing. Not even revealed entirely and already had they taken his breath away, dark, deep, and reflecting the morning sun in wonderful golden ways.  
  
The morning sun. His eyes widened and he whipped his head around in shock, seeing the sun nearly entirely having risen above the shore and like the wave hitting the ship the noises came back to him: the gentle whisper of the waves greeting his tail and human feet, the yelling of the humans on the boat, animals, some four-legged animal releasing a gruff sound. That same creature approached them in a hasty run and this time the merman didn’t hesitate in sliding into the deeper water until his tail was engulfed and he could propel himself forward, splashing only once within the water too shallow and then he was gone, racing towards a place he was certain would already be livid looking for their missing crown prince who had taken off in the middle of the night. 

  


｡･:*:･ﾟ’★,｡･:*:･ﾟ’☆

  


“Zhengting, little pearl…” His mother’s fingers felt gentle, driving through his hair relentlessly since a while now, meaning to draw his attention but what hadn’t happened the nights before was not the least short of happening right now. He didn’t want to listen to her, didn’t want to eat, sit with his family, not because he had been scolded excessively - albeit he had, no need to doubt as much - but because too many feelings were eating him up at once. His father had been suspicious of him going up to the realms of fresh air but so far no one had been able to prove such assessment, no one had seen him, too busy with the celebrations, and so far up not even the fish had taken proper note of him, aside from that one group of dolphins who must be resident closer to the shore.  
Unable to come up with some sort of proof, he had been left with harsh words and yells about suddenly disappearing, about how he better not end up like his brother, disappearing on them all without a word, and as harsh as those words had been, he had easily seen in Sungjoo’s mother’s eyes not filled with hate that these words had not been born from hard feelings, merely from pain of losing their son without knowledge of his whereabouts, always left wondering whether the second eldest even was alive when there were no means of communications. Possibly his disappearance had opened up old wounds as well, made them suspect he was the same, had fled his responsibilities so cruelly, when he had not at all.  
  
“My baby,” Zhong repeated, her slender fingers sliding down to his neck to look for some further reaction that was nowhere close to come. “I talked with your father this morning… Tomorrow will be the last time you’re allowed to go up.” Scratch his previous intentions, this time he rushed upwards to look at her with shock, at the pain written across her features and the gentle expression within her eyes as she didn’t even allow him to speak up but instead pressed one webbed finger against his lips. “Don’t go crazy now, baby. It’s not because of what you think but… On your next birthday, you will receive the crown. As a king, you will have no more chance to visit the world above so after your upcoming trip, your next stage of preparation will start. Can you follow me this far?”  
  
With her finger still pressed to his lips, he had no other option than to continue listening to her, even though his thoughts were rushing and toppling over. He hadn’t been supposed to take the crown for another few years so why now? had his disappearance shocked his father so much? did the king merely want to cut off his interest into humans by intercepting it so cruelly? or was the fear of losing another crowned prince just too much? Even if looking young, even his old man would end up exactly that: old.  
  
“I’m telling this to you now because I want you to think about this carefully - whether you stay with us or leave us now.” Slowly, her expression shifted into an even more pained one, eyebrows furrowed and blue eyes turning dark with sadness, tongue tracing her lips for a moment before she went on. “I want you to only listen now because… because I don’t actually want to lose you, my pearl…”  
  
If before he thought his feelings had been a mess, now he felt it all crumble down in favor of confusion. Thoughts of perfectly black eyes erased by the pale pair right in front of him, no more guilt over lying to his family, amazement of whether the human had been found and nurtured back to health, the struggle of wanting to go back and the shock of having been so close of having been found out. It all came to a screeching halt as he looked at his mother now, her pale complexion and nearly white hair fanning out around her like no one else’s would, even as she was sitting perfectly still. She looked beautiful like this, so much like him, all washed out colors and slender frame, for the first time he realized also how much she had aged, the faintest of lines around her lids that seemed to sparkle only when she was actually smiling as brightly as the sun illuminating even their realm. Usual youth was rivaled by the shadows beneath her eyes, the sagging of her shoulders as she leaned forth to hug her chest against her curled tail, sighing heavily.  
  
“I gave several promises concerning this story to not reveal the single parts to you but… Zhengting, I recognize the longing in your eyes because I’ve seen it before. Your aunt- She was the same as you. She was so amazed by everything humane, by their tools, by their looks, by what they had. The sparks in her eyes and yours whenever you held such things were the same.” There was love in her voice but it seemed to drown in the sadness of her downturned lips and the low speed of her rumbles, slender fingers driving through thick hair and brushing it out of her face. “One day she went up, she thought it wouldn’t be dangerous, it was just after a storm and there she found him. A human. He was in a small boat, had been lost and he had spotted her. She was too happy to find a human that she started talking to him. Swam next to him as she guided him back to land. She was both lucky and cursed, immediately knew he was the one but he was not made for her. He told her he lived in the town near the shore she had accompanied him to and they gave a promise, to meet up every full moon out on the sea. We knew it was safe because never anyone else looked for her and they met for thirteen continuous months. Then he told her he’d move.”  
  
It was not his story, yet the pain settled deep within his chest, a searing knife lodged into his heart as he could imagine all too easily how unsettling such information must have been to his aunt. “She decided to follow him,” Zhong added after one long moment, motherly eyes taking in the rush of emotions on his face as he tried to progress these words and then he was cut off again, lips parted for words he wasn’t allowed to utter now. “That was her part of the story, my son. That was my promise to her. But the one I tell you now is the secret I promised your father to keep so don’t tell anyone, have you understood?”  
  
Slowly he nodded his head, unable to refuse any request of hers but he meant it, he wouldn’t cause her trouble just because he had forgotten to keep his mouth shut for good.  
  
“You’re not like your brothers, Zhengting. I- I’m not like your mothers, my son. There is a reason my clan was exterminated that is not only caused by time so you need to treat this carefully.” Stern eyes bored into his as she looked for any sign of distress but all the prince was able to offer up was confusion and dear devotion to his one and only mom. “We’re not… We’re not seabound like the rest of them. We can change our appearance to walk on land but it’s not without a prize. My sister had to pay it. I had to pay it. In exchange for a pair of legs, you won’t be able to ever walk without pain. Every step will feel worse than the one before. Senses will be dulled. Strength will be lost. Water will become your weakness. I did it once and I won’t ever consider going back. Do you understand what I’m telling you?”  
  
His head was spinning, he felt dizzy, couldn’t progress what she was telling him. Legs. Walking. Pain. The crown. Last day. Her gentle fingers brought him to focus on her again as she touched below his chin to tilt his head upwards and have him look at her again. “Your aunt followed the man she loved. She lived as a human. I once followed her, I made a mistake. That’s why I was exposed, caught, and how your father came to save me. My mistake brought an end to our clan so consider it well before you act too fast. Your father lost one son already. I exposed our kind. I am at fault for our secret to be lost. And you’re not of pure blood, you might find complications in our abilities. Don’t tell me about your decision when you make it. But this is your one and only chance. Be sure to make the right choice, my pearl.”

  


｡･:*:･ﾟ’★,｡･:*:･ﾟ’☆

  


This time around, breaching the wavy surface allowed him to breathe in wonderfully refreshing air, tasting lighter now that the weather was clear, the sun approaching the horizon slowly and dipping everything into wonderful shades of pink, orange and purple. Probably, if someone lined up some of the tails of his siblings, it would look quite the same. Like Meiqi’s bright golden tail that seemed to be nearly the same hue as was Justin’s hair or that perfect sky blue that was resembled so well by both Wenhan’s and Quanzhe’s tails or the bright coral that seemed fit for that wonderful transcend of yellow and red along the horizon. Truly, if someone were to line up their tails, it would probably create one wonderful rainbow, a colorful party at home. It was just him to be the odd one out…  
  
He still hadn’t entirely wrapped his head around it as he slowly approached the shore, close to where he remembered having put down the human these few nights ago, well aware he wasn’t supposed to be this close to land but after having risked it already once, this time around he couldn’t help himself. Instead, he put his arms on one of those grand boulders and heaved his weight onto it, having his upper body leaning onto it, with his arms crossed and his chin on top, quite like he’d do with the boulder in his own cave. Maybe it wasn’t perfectly comfortable, but it allowed his tail to stay in the low of the water while the sun baked salt onto his back for as long as it lasted, and then the show of sky blooming flowers would start.  
  
In the far distance, he could see the humans work on the ships and walk around the town’s vicinity, closer than he had ever been before, and it reminded him of what Zhong had said all over again. So if he actually had such ability to shift… He had no idea of how to make it work, how to change his appearance to be able to look entirely like them, abandon all his wonderful seaborne abilities and his family just to… To what even?  
  
Always so focused on human properties that were so unknown to him, he had never even considered going up onto land, had treated it like an unreachable aim but now it was so easy to just take with his hands and suddenly he was hesitating. If maybe he went for just a day or two onto land, he could see so much, learn about them, about what mattered for them but on the other hand, he was scared, the idea of heading there all on his own… In comparison to his situation, his aunt had surely had it easier, had known her lover even before she roamed ground and he could have taught her all about human life while he was not even able to pronounce their words. All he could do was understand half of what they said but his vocal chords, tense and used to sea language, made it hard for him to even release more than a croak into the empty air.  
  
Maybe he should just go with his father’s wishes after all? just take the crown, rule their land, forge bonds? with these jewels on his head, he’d also have an excuse to visit Wenhan or just annoy his younger siblings as he seemed fit so wouldn’t that be enough? His heart ached with the ideas of when all he did was the mere act of sliding back into the water, more humans heading down to the beaches to probably watch the spectacle in peace. Except more humans meant a higher risk of getting caught.  
  
With trained ease he dipped back into the water without any splashing sounds and carefully maneuvered further out again, until the tip of his tail would no longer brush against ground and he most definitely wouldn’t be exposed as merfolk either. It was mere luck a tree’s branch drifted along the waves closeby, reminding him of the shipwreck from days ago. And the human he had seen.  
Images of such face all too easily had been haunting him since, whenever he closed his eyes, he could recall the man’s face as if it was right in front of him, only left wondering what kind of gaze he’d be met with, what kind of sound his voice carried, what his touch would feel like and- With a shake of his head he tried to brush these images off, knocking his head against the wooden piece as if that had him focusing again. This definitely was too little time to develop a crush and based on what logic? the first human he had ever seen? Because he was quite certain some of his own siblings were prettier than this one man. Objectively seen.  
  
Going from his whole life planning to just one single face seen for some minutes, for some reason he was stuck on the later for way longer, up to the point he hadn’t even noticed how it had gotten way darker already, the stars blossoming and flourishing in the darkness above. From a mere look upwards, he was already too mesmerized to even be able to spare one last thought on that pretty human, or his life down below, washed away like the sand on the beach and he wished it was merely that easy.  
  
When the sun eventually said goodbye, when all light had faded from the horizon’s lines, the first swooshing sound came up, an unseen missile shot up into the air only to explode with a boom, and despite the noise that drowned out all going on in his hand, he couldn’t help being fascinated within a single second. Colorful sparks colored the skies, flourishing colors nearly as intense as the scales he was used to see at home, sparkling and shining and creating such beautiful formations he couldn’t tear his eyes away for a second even. With the sea beneath, dark as the skies but more shimmery, it looked all the more breathtaking, the shadows that weren’t drawn in darker hues but rather in colorful waves, all of the event seemed to be brought to double its effects, making his heartbeat accelerate and the organic pump seem to be full of admiration for this sight.  
  
So focused, he lost track of too many things going on, could only squeal in shock and drop back into the water when he heard a barking sound behind him. One of his hands was still on the log and belatedly he remembered to close his fingers lest the webbing he had created earlier was spotted and causing his suspicion to his self. As if his showing his face only from eyes upwards and keeping the rest of his being under water wasn’t suspicious enough…  
  
“Hey,” a gentle voice called out to him, frame leaning against the side of a small boat decorated in flowers and, as Zhengting’s eyes darted aside, he realized there were a few more of those, some with weird constructions that shot little things into the sky and it took him some seconds to realize those were the cause of those blooming flowers. But he couldn’t focus on them for long when that same tone continued, “Are you okay?”  
  
His sight shifted back to the man in front of him and recognition had him come up with a gasp - which was apparently misunderstood as a lack of breath because those perfectly drawn eyebrows furrowed - as he could only look at the man in shock. The man in the boat. From the shore. The man he had saved. Who was currently holding a hand out to him as if asking him to come up, a matter of impossibility, at least while he had still a scaly tale attached to his hips so he could only use the wood as some sort of barrier between them as he hugged it close to his chest. It still seemed to be enough to get the message across, that he wanted a bit more distance, that he didn’t have the heart to take that held out hand.  
  
The gaze he could feel on himself was uncomfortable, as if piece by piece he was taken apart, not broken down like the reefs he knew he could destroy with ease if only he build up enough force to crash into them but rather slowly and gently dismantled, like an anemone he wanted to slowly take apart, spread it out until he could reach its core. It was, to put it simple, unsettling. Aside from his own mother or maybe his eldest brother, no one had ever looked at him with such intent that made him want to glue his lips together lest he’d reveal all secrets he knew. Only that this human would not be able to understand any of his words regardless.  
  
“You’re the boy from the beach, right?” The stranger still tested, and with that handsome face plastered right in front of the crown prince, he couldn’t even focus onto the blooming flowers that still spread across the sky, only on the way their various shades illuminated the pale skin of the human, made the legged creature nearly look as if glowing. “The one who watched over me at the shore the morning after the ship-” As if sensing distress, the fluffy creature next to the human released another sound and, as the human focused on his assumed pet for a moment to calm it down, Zhengting couldn’t help thinking they were a bit like dolphins who often also seemed to sense the distress of the merfolk. Complete opposite of Linkai for sure.  
  
“I remember your hair, no one has such beautiful hair,” the human went on, looking as if he wanted to say something more but be it for hesitance or just the merman’s reaction of confusedly looking at his hands. What did his hands have to do with that? His feelings must be written across his face because the human only smiled and inquired, “You don’t speak my language, do you? But you seem to understand it?”  
  
Carefully the prince nodded his head, trying to part his lips in response but only a faint noise slipped past, the act enough to have the human widen his beautifully dark eyes. Instead of further questions, pale fingers were raised to the dark locks Zhengting, too, had gotten the pleasure of touching before and it took him a while to make the connection, aided only by the human repeating, “hair,” while touching the inky strands and it sent the seaborne into a loop of ambivalence. He felt horrible, he had thought the human had been out of it on that morning but apparently he still remembered, and the mere fact that the prince was remembered sent his heart into a frenzy. Especially when the human added, “It’s really beautiful. Your hair. But now that I can see your face, that seems to be beautiful too.”  
  
For maybe the first time in his life, Zhengting could feel his cheeks burn up, nervously pressing one hand against them, palm and back, trying to figure out what it meant because he had received uncountable compliments, their family was known for being outstandingly beautiful, and he had the confidence to back it up as well, so he couldn’t understand why he suddenly felt so flustered over some stranger complimenting him. Then again, he also had considered this man the most beautiful being to ever have lain his eyes upon.  
  
“Don’t you want to get out of the water? It must be freezing cold in there,” the human tried again, holding out his hand in a silent offer, and yes, it was cold, even with a merfolk’s heated body he was aware that the water surrounding his figure wasn’t exactly warm but his tail still… His gaze still lingered on that hand held out to him and then, as if sensing his heartfelt desire, pain rushed up his lower body, from the very tip of his tail up to his hips, making him clench his teeth in distress while digging his fingers into the wood, splintering underneath his harsh grip, cracking. He could see the worry in the human’s eyes, unfiltered panic but yet too unsure of what to do, maybe a bit terrified due to the shipwreck from days ago.  
  
By the time the stranger seemed to have made up his mind and the wood broke into pieces with his grip, the pain of his lower body subsided. Instead, he found himself suddenly unable to stay afloat, no waving his tail allowed to keep him up and just as he thought he would finally drown in ways nature would have forbidden him to, strong arms wrapped around his frame to haul him into the boat again. Immediately goosebumps rose against his skin, the air was colder than the water could have ever been, and the warm body he had collided with felt soothing against his bare skin. But the moment he had gotten used to this sense of warmth, panic overcame him. He was in a boat. As a merman. He couldn’t allow his tail to be seen so he struggled to get out of the human’s embrace but as he looked down, down at his own body, following its lines, there were no longer any translucent and reflecting scales, no strong muscles and fins, no, there were a pair of smooth and pale legs he was hardly able to move around.  
  
His terror must have shocked the human more than he would have assumed for as he stared at the one he had saved from drowning before, the latter was frozen in his place and holding his hands up as if in defense. Only the furry thing next to them seemed unaffected, wagging its fluffy tail next to them and looking at them with curiosity. With the same kind of curiosity this dog held, he turned his gaze to his legs, the smooth and unblemished skin, the length of them, shorter than his tail and so thin, looking like sticks in comparison to the sturdy muscles he was used to to propel him through the masses of water and so hard to move. Even just trying to stretch them out a bit felt so weird, draining his strength within seconds and he couldn’t help the heavy exhale leaving his lips from the unfamiliar movement.  
  
His noise must have startled the human out of his stupor for he rushed forth, asking, “Do you have a cramp? Does it hurt?” Zhengting didn’t even know what a cramp was but he still nodded his head in agreement, allowing the born human to take his legs and maneuver them onto a clothed lap, fingers running against his freshly created skin, digging into the flesh to look for something but whatever it was, it felt awfully good, better than having his hair played with by his mother. A little sob like sound escaped him as he sank into himself in relief, the touch on his skin aiding him in getting accustomed to what his new limbs felt like, drowning in the moment that was only interrupted by some yells from the side.  
  
Eyes wide, he looked at the bigger ship approaching them, and the guy standing at its side waving one arm to draw attention and only giving in when the human touching his legs moved one hand to wave in response. “Ziyi,” the unfamiliar person called out, shouting across the noise of sky flowers and Zhengting looked at the owner of the boat in wonder, wondering whether that was this guy’s name. “Why are you on your own? Didn’t auntie forbid you to- Oh!”  
  
It looked nearly comical how big the new guy’s eyes had gotten when being within seeing range, the dark making it harder to see and even to the prince it was slowly getting more difficult to see the shapes he was used to see sharp even in vast distance look more hazy. If he could even see them still. But he could still see that shouting one’s face and the bedlam on his face as he asked, “Did you go fishing or something? Pretty sure you didn’t have a naked guy in your arms ever before.”  
  
“I found him in the water,” maybe-Ziyi answered calmly, reassuringly, but as if that question had stirred something, he reached around the boat only to hand a piece of fabric to the prince. Some moments of lack of reaction passed and then, with some hesitation, the dark haired human spread out the fabric and wrapped it around the shifter’s shoulders, immediately having the merfolk sink into the warmth of the piece wrapped around him, carefully tugged into place by the same hands that had touched his legs to cover his nudity. Despite it being unlike what he was used to at home, he had slowly come to realize that humans didn’t go around showing off their birth dress usually, it seemed weird to him, having to cover up, but when all was still new to him, he didn’t want to stand out too much.  
  
“I’m not sure he’s from around here but he saved me before,” maybe-Ziyi declared, having to yell less now that the two boats were closer, nearly within touching distance and curiously Zhengting held out his hand to touch the wet wood so close to him, looking at it in amazement. Before, he hadn’t been allowed to get too close to any ships, and this thing was just a smaller version of, so he could honestly admit to his intrigue over it. “We should take him back home until we know where he came from. And I still owe him one, Kun.”  
  
At this point, the merfolk wasn’t even following their conversation anymore, he only looked at all the new things he hadn’t seen before and then back up the skies, seeing the flowers lessen until then they ceased. Immediately he was filled with longing, holding his hand out towards the sky as if that would help him bring them back, an action not going by unnoticed by his alleged savior.  
  
“Did you watch the fireworks? Out here?” The ink haired asked, going on to explain what exactly he meant, until the prince could be certain they were talking about the same sky flowers and slowly nodded his head in agreement, rousing a gentle smile upon the human’s face. “I’ll show you some more soon. Do you think you can walk already?”  
  
Sometime in between their two boats’ meeting and his getting talked to again, they had arrived at the port, the bigger boat tied to one of the landing docks and the smaller, attached to its big brother, was locked that way too. In wonder he watched as maybe-Ziyi first lifted the furry figure upwards, handing it to who was likely a friend and then those infinitely dark eyes were directing at him, making his heart squeeze tight painfully within his chest. Only when hands were held out to him again did he realize what all this was about so he tried to heave himself up, supporting himself on the boat’s railing to find his balance but where usually he’d have moved with elegance, now he wasn’t even able to align his legs the right way to bring his weight up, feet slipping across the wood, hurting with every little movement and he wasn’t yet certain whether it was the friction or the curse.  
  
“Wait, wait,” the gentle man called out again, soft hands guiding his to sign him to hold onto the blanket before they wrapped around his waist to heave him up and immediately, in the very moment Zhengting put weight onto his new legs again, he released a silent scream of pain, thousand needles prickling up his skin, sensation as if his flesh was torn apart over and over again and yet it remained unharmed. His face must not have given away too much of his pain for the human only smiled at him and then called for this Kun again, with joint efforts of maybe-Ziyi lifting him up and Kun grabbing him from above was he brought onto the bigger ship, followed by his savior.  
  
Again, he was down on the ground, sitting on the floor as the pain within his limbs was still too intense, and maybe he looked quite too pitiful, or maybe that stranger’s heart was just too kind, but as they helped him again to get onto the docks and he found himself still unable to walk, instead of being encouraged to, strong arms undertook his back and legs to lift him up, pressing his frame against the one’s chest whom he seemed to owe more and more to.  
  
“You look tired, you should rest,” the one carrying him up steep steps and yet not seeming out of breath demanded, and the prince hated to be ordered around, but thanks to whatever wicked spell, this time around he couldn’t even refuse as he merely pulled the fabric tighter around his frame and leaned his head against strong shoulders. Too much exhaustion overcame him all at once, the many riddles of his life, the strain of nearly getting exposed, this pain he could finally understood as to why was called a curse, and with the soft lull of getting carried to some mysterious place he was out faster than he could call for his dad. 

  


｡･:*:･ﾟ’★,｡･:*:･ﾟ’☆

  


Unfamiliar light filtered into the room as he woke up and in the first second he felt utterly shocked. There was direct sunlight, the water around him was missing, instead of soft corals underneath him there was something else, some kind of thing he had never felt before, and this was not his room. Panic welled up within him and had him rushing off this unfamiliar thing that he could still recognize as a bed, entirely blind to the curse until it came back crushing over him the moment he set foot onto solid ground, too hasty to catch his momentum as the pain shooting up his leg had him falling onto the floor.  
  
A soundless scream morphed his face into a grimace of suffering, fingers clawing into the air and even that, the fact that he couldn’t hear his own voice but very well sense how his throat got worked up, was making it no easier for him. He disdained it, for the first time in his life he hated that no one came to his help because as much pride as he carried and as often as he kept his injuries of mindless accidents to himself despite the way he couldn’t hide them, quite as much he felt so confused right now, yearning for his mother’s solace, for Cheng Xiao’s soothing touch, for Justin’s bubbly personality, anything to distract him from the searing streams of fire still running up these useless limbs.  
  
The warning his mother had given him was echoing through his mind now, that every step he would take would feel of pure pain, that his ability to speak might not be the same, and he hadn’t paid enough attention to it. Then again, it was not like he had wished for this to happen of his own volition, with nothing more but wanting to get close to this one human, the thing he was not certain whether to describe as a blessing or a curse had started to take action to catapult him into a situation so utterly foreign to him.  
  
Terror was still running through his veins when the door at the end of the room suddenly burst open, a human shape entering in a rush which he could hardly see thanks to how much his sight had lessened and was still bleary from sleep. But as knees pretty much knocked into the ground next to him and sturdy arms pulled him up, he found himself in a grip quite familiar, not even needing to rub his eyes to know this was who must be maybe-Ziyi. His suspicion was proven right when his vision cleared enough to be able to make out that painfully handsome face so close to his own, heat rising to his cheeks but he didn’t find it in himself to lean back, only blinked his eyes at the human in front of him.  
  
“A servant said there was a noise from here but… why are you on the ground?” The stranger asked, with so much concern in his eyes it was nearly painful, not the level he would expect from an alien person and yet kind of what he always anticipated for a whole other reasons. The crown prince getting hurt was a big deal where he lived, it was still the person to lead their kingdom later on. Just that this human was no part of his kingdom and therefore definitely not inclined to have to worry about Zhengting. Yet he did.  
  
Still unable to create a single sound with his vocal chords, he found himself only able to point at his legs in a helpless gesture and, with the memories of the previous night coming back slowly, he could nearly see the puzzle being pieced back together within the earthbound’s eyes, the realization of how, apparently, the merfolk’s legs didn’t work quite as well as they were supposed to.  
  
“So you can’t speak nor walk,” the human pointed out while wrapping strong arms around the prince’s body to lift him back onto the bed. “Just how were you able to save me before?” The words were accusing but there was no mockery or attack included, only a gentle smile and instead of questioning why this one human was so certain of him being this grand savior, he didn’t find himself enabled to question it.  
  
Carefully he was set down on the edge of the bed, with the human boy settling next to him, stranger eyes focused on him quite as much as his were on his legs as he set foot on the ground again, testing just when the pain would start to set in and when he could bear it finally. Whenever he tried to get up but his limbs turned out to be too weak to bear it, strong arms were held out to catch him in case of a fall that he always again directed at the mattress behind him.  
  
There were no more words said, Zhengting wasn’t certain whether that was for his own focus on walking, or at least trying to stand, or because the two of them were not yet quite used to a situation, he to his status as supposed human and the actual human for being around a challenged person. Only when he ended up falling back onto bed once again, breath heavier and heart beating grumpily within his chest, he decided to take a break, lowering himself until his back hit the soft surface and he could look around the room. It was unlike the ones from his place but he figured that might have to do with the changed environment, air and water weren’t exactly the same, after all.  
  
Instead of rounded windows that would allow the merfolk to enter and leave upon will, these were rectangles with some frames and sheer material in between, holding people out or maybe just the inhabitants in. It seemed like too much of a contrast to his kingdom and the unspoken rule of not using the windows to enter but rather the doors, a matter of privacy, so to say. At least the doors seemed somewhat similar, except theirs were closed with strings and the likes, much rather than this kind of hidden mechanic of these man made kinds. In general, homes likes his seemed to be simpler, no need for extensive furniture, a dressing table for most of them, as was pushed into one corner of this room, shelves or shells that held jewelry and accessories, in case of his eldest brother there would be some weapons stored against the wall. Except that they needn’t clothes so there were none of these huge wooden boxes to store such fabrics, and even now, the white fabric covering his upper body and reaching down to his thighs seemed restricting around his frame.  
  
“Can you at least tell me your name?” The man possibly called Ziyi asked after a while, once Zhengting had had enough time to look at the room, and his eyes were filled with amazement at the question when obviously he couldn’t talk. Another moment passed of him just blinking at the human borne as a sudden memory came upon him, of when cute little Mia had not yet been able to talk after birth but oh so fascinated by the world around them and started to draw around on everyone babysitting’s tail to express just what it had been for her to want.  
  
It would be a method to communicate, for the time being that is, and because touch was so very normal among his kind, he didn’t hesitate in pulling the man’s arm closer, pushing up the sleeve of clothing to expose pale skin of a lower arm. With a little smile he looked at the stranger and set a fingertip against that smooth skin he had explored already once before, only to then focus on what he was writing on the man’s skin, slowly, carefully, so nothing would go by unnoticed.  
  
Some seconds passed, and then the ink haired asked, “Theo?” It didn’t sound what Zhengting was used to hearing under the sea, so he tilted his head aside curiously but as his gaze fell on some thing behind the man, stuck on a shelf, colorful paper with writings on it, he had to figure that even their writing was not the same. But if his name was written one way in his language and still able to be interpreted by this human, he would just have to deal, he figured. In acceptance of his new name, he slowly nodded his head, trying to recall the sound of it within his mind to recognize it at a later time.  
  
Already the next moment he was distracted, the human repeating that new given name to then offer himself, “Ziyi.” His first assumption had therefore been right, and as the prince looked at the man again, he broke into a bright smile. At least now he could be assured of having been right in his assumptions, and it all felt even better when seeing a similar smile on that handsome face, albeit lips not parted like his own. 

  


｡･:*:･ﾟ’★,｡･:*:･ﾟ’☆

  


It was hours later, with the sun in its zenith and the air feeling cakey and hot, the heated ground underneath his bare feet adding to the pain but it didn’t take the joy out of his every move as he was finally able to walk. Albeit it was a bit embarrassing to need Ziyi’s support with each step he made, thanks to how his knees would buckle with the pain or the anguish being enough to have his lips part in silent moans, he couldn’t deny how it was relieving to know he was actually able to do as much.  
  
After a morning filled with slow walks and the human showing him around his home - which turned out to be a castle, mind you - now had become the time for Zhengting to learn about the new things he had always been so curious about, apparently. They were standing on a thing called terrace, nothing he wasn’t familiar with yet, they had similar things at home, but whereas there he’d only see the city beneath, from the point he was currently standing at he could look out at the sea, his home, the oceans calling for him with their wonderful voice. Carefully he walked towards the ledge, leaning onto the railing to be able to look at what was spread out in front of him, see his kingdom in ways he had never before.  
  
The reminder of which, that this was his kingdom, his place to rule, which he had so cruelly abandoned, immediately made him grief over his own choices. No matter how much he had disdained his role as a crowned prince, now that he had abandoned that place, he couldn’t help feel guilty for his own actions, his selfish acts, wondered whether he had hurt his mother a lot by abandoning her quite like his aunt had done before, whether his father was despairing over his disappearance that would be too much like Sungjoo’s. At least, they were likelier to find out where he was staying whereas his brother’s whereabouts were a mystery to behold.  
  
His mood must have been too obvious, judged by his solemn expression, because it didn’t take long for Ziyi to put a reassuring hand onto his back, carefully moving up and down, and then another against his chest to carefully guide him to lower his weight. He hadn’t looked, only put his trust into the alleged prince who had taken care of him all day long already, but he still found himself a bit surprised when suddenly his behind was meeting something soft to cushion his fall, four-legged piece of furniture close enough to the railing to still allow him to lean against it and look out, while the born human reached for his legs to gentle rub over. “Do they hurt again?”  
  
Maybe it was some sort of magic, the way the other man had so easily figured out why it was difficult for him to walk even without the details, but Zhengting found himself grateful for it. Just that it wasn’t only his legs that hurt but also his heart, longing to be home, not because he prefered one place over another but because he mourned the pain he must have inflicted upon his family. Denying the truth would imply lying, though, so he nodded his head in response to the question and then, after some consideration, pointed at his heart, rubbing over his chest that was more revealed than covered before vaguely gesturing towards the building behind them, his eyes big and hopeful as he could only hope for the inky haired to understand.  
  
“You miss your home?” The earthbound asked and immediately the crowned prince nodded his head. Home. That word was always easy to understand. “So where is it you came from?” This time answering came easier, as he gestured towards the ocean, an area so grand any kind of land might be across it so didn’t bother with specifics, reassured of the lack of myths surrounding his kind that he’d never really get exposed regardless. For a moment, the faintest kind of frown was across Ziyi’s features before they relaxed again and he pointed out, “You must be far away from home then… Are you not lonely?”  
  
This one, it was a word he was not yet familiar with, but lest he could focus on it, they were already interrupted by someone else, a figure dressed about as properly as Zhengting currently was, with an addition of pants, stepped out of the shadows that were the closed of hallways. It took the merman only a bit to realize it was the same man from the night before, the one who had been standing on that other boat, but despite the casual dressing, now that man he knew as Kun looked more formal. He figured it might have to do with the sword sleazily hung around slender hips.  
  
“There you are, man!” The younger looking called out while pulling out a chair of his own and settling closer to them, legs spread lightly and arms resting on top, it was a posture so highly unfamiliar with the seaborne he couldn’t help look in interest, slightly tilting his head aside. Legs truly were fascinating, those who had a tail couldn’t even sit like that for they couldn’t just pull their scales in two. “Aunt’s been looking for you. The whole castle is curious about this foundling you brought home so she wants to meet… him.”  
  
The shifter was aware this was about him, and if only because of the intense look he received from the newly arrived who gave them a once over before adding, “But you might dress him up better. Wouldn’t want our Prince Charming to get into trouble for inappropriate relationships, right?”  
  
Humans were weird, Zhengting silently noted to himself, because he didn’t exactly know what was inappropriate about this situation when he was so used to merfolk swimming around in their birth dress. There was no need to cover up, and all they did was put on jewelry that was more often than not a present by parents for birthdays or their coming of age ceremony. He, too, had received a gift on that special day, a finely crafted crown of shells and shards that was resting on top of one of his shelves, the headpiece he’d pull out and carry on special occasions. Like his father’s birthday.  
  
A sigh escaped his lips at the memory of such, blind to the talking that took place around him, but it seemed to be enough to startled them out of conversation for he felt Ziyi’s gentle hold on his arm. “Hey,” the human said softly, a gentle smile lingering on his absurdly handsome face, “That was nearly a sound right now! If you manage to make a proper one, I could send you someone to maybe try training your voice with. Would you like that?”  
  
It sounded absolutely perfect, if he had to be honest. But his mother’s advisory was still at the back of his mind, that his voice might never be the same up here as it was down below. Still, wasn’t it better to have hope rather than to give up without trying? So he carefully nodded his head, a bit shy in movement as he was hesitant about the choice he had just met, but when seeing Ziyi’s dark eyes brighten up, little stars sparkling in their infinite color, he couldn’t bring himself to regret that choice too.  
  
“Cool!” The human called out and then turned to Kun again, “I’ll talk to mother later. I think Theo still needs some time to adjust but maybe you can keep us company during dinner, yeah, bro?”  
As Zhengting listened and found himself understanding less and less with the onslaught of words, he wondered whether with the time of his stay at least his ability to understand would increase to that point. Maybe he’d even turn out to be able to speak it himself. But until that happened, or just until he was called upon, he permitted his gaze to travel back to the sea and look at it, looking for even the smallest sign of one of his kind, maybe even his siblings, despite how his senses had dulled in ways he had never before anticipated. 

  


｡･:*:･ﾟ’★,｡･:*:･ﾟ’☆

  


It was becoming a weird habit of night, way unlike what he was used to during day time, with the sun out it seemed all chirpy and happy, befitting of the little dolphin he had met on that fateful day. Ziyi seemed eager to spend as much time with him as possible, talking to him in that smooth and soothing voice, sometimes it was also filled with silence, sometimes Xukun - as he had learned was Kun’s full name - burst through the doors with whatever updates and started a conversation with his cousin and to Zhengting it became a perfect white noise, a heartwarming replacement to the rushing of the sea underneath.  
  
But the night was a time for himself, of sitting on that little bench underneath the window to be able to look out and look at the little nights from the city beneath that looked so much like home but was not, silent, interrupted only by the chirping of cicadas, as he had learnt. It was time he had to himself and his voice, of trying to figure how to filter the air in his throat to produce sounds or how to click his tongue in just right ways, a method that was so unusual to what he was used to. Yixing had often told him that their means of communication was like other mammals of the sea, like dolphins or whales, they produced some sort of soundwaves that were transmitted through water and then became audible to those with a befitting hearing. It was why they could talk to dolphins and whales, too, except it was like different languages they were required to learn first.  
  
This prior means of communication seemed to have been so easy, had been so natural for him while this new method felt so, so forceful… His throat only tended to get more and more sore the longer he attempted to produce any sort of sound, it had him missing the clicking sounds he could normally produce at the back of his throat when his tongue was comparatively loose, not feeling quite as heavy as it was now.  
  
Just how had his mother done this? had she talked too? what had her voice sounded like on land? Now that he considered it, just how many questions had he missed to ask her while he had still had a chance too? On the other hand, before he hadn’t actually considered going through with this whole… thing, in default therefore a better way to name it. Not like he even had had a chance too, when all this had taken place in less than twenty-four hours or some.  
  
With a heavy sigh he fell back against the wall, letting his head drop against it with a thump to instead have his eyes travel over the starry skies he could see, wanting to curse but being unable to, wanting to cry but having no tears to spare, wanting to seek his mother’s arms comfort but being so far out of reach. Not to get him wrong, life on land was great, it was fascinating, it was undoubtedly made better by Ziyi’s companyship - but it was also so much unlike what he was used to, not to mention the loneliness he felt as the only merfolk around. If at least he had the reassurance of his aunt, who must be so much more used to this…  
  
“Hey,” a new voice called softly, and yet it was enough to nearly have him fall over the ledge of the window and so cruelly drop into death, fingers tight around the wood of his bench as his frantic eyes looked for the source of sound only to find it in one softly drawn face, features that carried still a bit of juvenile but sweet fat and the most endearing smile he had ever seen. And that said a lot, when he had a whole lot more siblings than he even wanted to attempt counting. “Are you the new guy? The one Ziyi brought in?”  
  
Hesitantly he nodded his head, something about the way this was phrased made something in his stomach churn, organs twisting in ways he thought were definitely not healthy but looking down at his stomach, from where he had pulled his shirt away, there seemed to be nothing wrong. Although clothes still felt weird, he wanted to run around without but the first time he had done so, his host had just looked at him with wide eyes and red cheeks and then stuttered something about inappropriate behavior and getting dressed and maybe he had felt a tad too much pity for the poor human at that time and tried to at least wear a shirt at all times. One that was loose, airy, and definitely not those weird pants that felt so constrictive around the area he wanted to have most freedom at: his lower body. Because only an idiot would decorate their tail so anything alike felt narrowing even with human limbs now.  
  
“The kid who can’t talk, right?” This stranger asked again, and the way he leaned out of the window around the corner seemed so very sickening when there was no water to keep them afloat. But the merfolk guessed it gave way to ease that way, being able to converse without actually having to let someone into this borrowed room of his. “I’m Zhangjing. The one who’s been told to teach you talking.” And with even more freedom to his movements, the young man held a hand out into the free air for Zhengting to take, which he - irresponsibly so - did.  
  
“I’ve been listening to a bit now so let’s see,” that presumably crazy kid said, leaning his lower arms onto the windowsill on his side and then, out of seemingly nowhere, pulled some bread forth to rip pieces from and chew on. “You sound like nothing I’ve ever heard, as if you have no idea how to work your throat at all but I guess that’s normal when you never talked before. You strain it too much, though. Try to relax a bit and just let the air through and then think of the kind of sound you make. Usually we all start with an ‘A’-sound, as it’s most natural for us but most kids start screaming when they’re born too so you not having done anything alike so far might make this a bit more awkward and…”  
  
Honestly, the merman considered that whatever this chatterbox was saying was important but on the other hand, it was becoming considerably late at night and there were so many words, sentences upon one another to the point he had to question whether that guy even breathed. It would be annoying were it not for that appeasing kind of voice and that charming sparkle within innocently charming brown eyes. But without any ability to follow such rapid trains of thoughts, he only focused on the first part, of relaxing one’s throat and thinking of a sound and-  
  
At the faintest of sounds, his eyes widened, trying to repeat it, again and again, until it was way more vocal and clearly audible. Some time in between Zhangjing must have stopped talking, for when he turned his head to look for confirmation, he was already met with a proud smile, the kind of expression he had seen when for the first time he had learned how to sing his mother’s lullaby and perfectly succeeded in. Giddiness and pride swelled within him, like little swarms of butterfly and yet so different, not aroused by someone else but just himself.  
  
“You did well,” his newfound teacher approved, pushing his weight off the windowsill as he added, “Just shift your tongue around in your mouth next and try to figure out how to make all these vocal sounds. I feel like you’ll have way less problems with the clicking sounds but that’s based only on what I’ve heard from you so don’t stress too much and…”  
  
Again, and with a tad of guilt, Zhengting tuned the human out and just awaited the end of such grand speech with a gentle smile, up until the point the earthbound declared some days of practice to be passed before he’d show up again and then they’d pick up again, something about pudding and good sleeping too but the mer wasn’t anymore sure he was still mentally awake. He only smiled softly at the other as his sort of visitor left and then, with a now discovered way of voicing his pain, he made his way over to bed with small moans, every step, indeed, truly, hurting more than the one taken before and it was all getting worse. 

  


｡･:*:･ﾟ’★,｡･:*:･ﾟ’☆

  


In the span of merely a week he had somehow managed to learn a stuff: that this tiny triton was not meant to be used to comb one’s hair but to stab food much like his ancestors would have stabbed their enemies before - now that he thought about it, that also made somewhat more sense; he learned that these plates with numbers and enframed by woods were actually supposed to carry little arrows, to tell the time, as Ziyi had said, which seemed absurd in a way but only in consideration of how merfolk told the time by the changes in water. Such was not a trait humans were able to possess, apparently, but he noticed it was one the dog could follow, as he had gotten to know that furry animal was called, so loyally following Ziyi around.  
  
Wei, as the cute thing was called, was quite as affectionate as the dwarf lanternsharks his eldest brother had once brought from a travel, in such an adorable means of journey it was nearly laughable. Considering their small size, they had huddled together in a big shell as the then crowned prince had shot through the masses of water to deliver them from their original place of living to their little kingdom. Zhengting had still been a child when he had first seen them, not yet considered an adult within their society, but he had felt for them as they fell sick with the change of climate and yet, those that had prevailed and created their own little colony within the bounds of their realm, had become an adorable version of pets to their kind.  
  
Whereas Wei was often seen following Ziyi around, or just sleeping in a corner of the library - and Zhengting had quite gasped at the sheer amount of books that were spread around, all the knowledge on the human world, the options offered; stories, facts, so much to learn - or maybe kept entertained by being played around with, such as Xukun seemed to enjoy, those animals the merfolk considered pets were quite different. There was no such thing of keeping them encaged in their houses when there was a permanent come and go, the fish looked for their own food and there was only a valid rule of no killing within city boundaries to keep peace, but how could they possibly feed smaller fish to pet sharks when the fish were equally friends to the mer? So, hypocritically, they just allowed them to hunt each other altogether outside of the area of law enforced.  
  
Yet the tiny sharks remained his favorites, barely as big as his two hands put together, he had loved to nuzzle his face into their small bodies, sickly enjoying the little scratch of their dermal denticles against his cheeks, but most of all, he just admired the way their small bodies gave away the softest of glows at night, like little stars dotting the night skies up above. There were no such animals like these around, none carrying the bio-luminescence that even his kind had tried to imitate by rubbing algae against their scales. It went without saying that, albeit of short effect, it made one spectacular show, seeing glowing tales in the depth of the sea, the way dance troupes would swim in formation, create wonderful patterns, basically drawing within the oceans. It was a show he wanted to see again but regardless of under or above the sea, it was a rare sight exclusive to festivities, so it was the kind of longing he could bear.  
  
For the moment he felt far more entailed with the sight offered to him, it was the faintest of shines, the lanterns of fishers out on their boats. They had set out awfully early but it was only for his own inability to sleep that he had gotten up and walked to one of the nearby balconies to watch the starry skies when he had caught sight of them. Maybe a dozen ships of various sizes that had slowly departed from their docks, the smaller ones with a lantern at the front to illuminate the way and attract fish and that looked not unlike the anglerfish that were, honestly, mildly horrifying. He was more than aware that as a future king he was supposed to love all seaborne alike but some of them… Now, they were harder to get accustomed to.  
  
There were also bigger boats, with two or three lanterns attached, and with the darkness of the time prevailing, it were mostly only these soft lights able to be seen, attracting him quite like the fish under the sea and were it not for knowing how dangerous these boats could be, maybe he, too, would have approached them long before. He knew some of his distant, distant, utterly distant relatives in other parts of the seas still hunted humans, their frames build for such gruesome activity, with claws and cuttingly sharp fins, luring fishers in with their singing and then eating their still beating hearts. Those were another kind of seaborne harder to get along with, especially since he had heard they would eat sharks as well and that was just utterly cruel, not to mention the gory details of their deeds. Truly gruesome.  
  
But clocks, small tritons and pets were not among the only things he had learned so far - there was foods and proper eating that was not unlike their table manners and yet just the same, he had seen so many different kinds of dresses and attires, had slowly adapted to the language to the point he could understand nearly all but these so entirely foreign names of foods or tools. This time, he was able to gladly pride himself in learning fast, unlike before, when what he had lacked in understand would have needed to be compensated in dedication and that he had never held. Not to get him wrong, he loved his folk, loved his kingdom, loved his home - but there was more to the world than the sea. He loved his home but slowly he was becoming aware of another thing: he was not made to be a king.  
  
He could no longer feel bound to his home when he had seen what was offered up above, his feelings a roller coaster of joy and curiosity, of guilt and blame, of fascination and juvenile intrigue, of feeling homesick and the burdens on his shoulders. With a sigh he pressed the palms of his hands against his eyes, feeling overcome with too many thoughts he didn’t want to linger at so he pushed them off, quite like the blankets some while ago he now found himself crawling beneath again, a welcome shied to the world that made him think too much.

  


｡･:*:･ﾟ’★,｡･:*:･ﾟ’☆

  


When he came to again, it was thanks to a gentle nudge against his shoulder, belonging to one pale arm, slender but elegant, a short sleeved blouse and then a tame face with big eyes, expression sheepish. He was quite certain he had never before seen this girl but assuming her uniform, she was an employee to the royal family very much. “I apologize for waking you, sir. But the Queen requested your attendance for the afternoon tea so…” Automatically his eyes darted over to the clock on the wall, trying to read the time but sight too hazy to make out anything but shades of black and white. “Sir, it’s shortly before noon but the Queen has some… standards…”  
  
Slowly he sat up, rubbing his eyes to try to get rid of sleep - within his clouded mind and heavy lids alike. He was tired, yes, barely awake, but he could still understand exactly what that girl was hinting at, simply because he already knew all that from home, what private talks with the King entailed, no matter that that very same man was supposed to be his father as well. There simply was a distinct difference between the man as his father during family meals and the man as the King who talked business with him.  
  
Mere difference was that getting ready under the sea was quite different to above, because surrounded by water there was little one had to do except brush their hair down or, in case of his sisters, maybe braid them a bit but then again, their father had always been more lenient with the girls. Perhaps because he would have to see them off sooner or later while sons were way likelier to stay within the political schemes. Just how different it was, though, he only realized after he had been handed one of those shirts he usually wore around by the servant and then was lead to one grand tiled room, interspersed with translucent curtains and with tubs set into the floor, making it all look like the royal pools those were supposed to be.  
  
Currently the open doors allowed the light fabrics to fly softly with the breeze while the girl headed over to a shelf on the only solid wall, when all others were glassen doors to allow as much illumination as possible. Dozens of bottles were lined up which she looked into, filled with crystals or liquids and only when she had decided on one - the small minerals - she approached one of the tubs to throw a handful inside. “I was told you can’t speak so,” she started, and fumbled around a bit until she had found some little tool, a cup of metal with a wooden handle that she softly swung around, “ring this when you need help.”  
  
The sound it procured was fascinating, had him approaching the little thing carefully to swing in quite the way she had done, jingle it around to hear that little noise he had heard coming from her direction on the way to this room already. Before he had wondered what it was, that sound, hidden in his cave he had wondered what it was, that tool. Now, at least, his curiosity was satisfied so he could focus on her again, on trying to find out just what he was supposed to do now.  
  
“Have you never taken a bath like this before?” She asked, awfully perceptive, as Zhengting reasoned, because communicating with one’s eyes really wasn’t quite as easy, and his lingual traits were still far behind. “Just take off your clothes and get into the water. I’ll come get you after a while to help you get dressed or you can ring the bell if you need anything.”  
  
Slowly he nodded his head, before he turned to the small pool again and then, clumsily from limbs still heavy, he pulled off his shirt before lowering himself down into the water, words of his mother escaping his mind until he felt the sudden force that pulled his legs together. He couldn’t fight it, the way it felt like his flesh was torn apart, his legs cut open to be criss-cross stitched together again, bones breaking, shattering, to make one out of several again, feet twisting and crushing until his toes had formed lines of his tail and the webbing between was filling out. It was a process of seconds but it felt like hours, had him twist his face into a silent scream as his back arched in pain, the nature of water calling out for him and defying the rules of a curse he had not been able to understand in first place.  
  
Only as he fell back into the water, waves splashing over the edge and soiling the tiles around, when he saw the figure of the servant standing at the bottom line of the pool with her fingers clutched around the curtain, did he remember he was not alone. Worse than that, she had seen his turn, she had seen how his body had dismorphed, his limbs had changed, she was currently looking at his luminescent scales and with the silence between them, filed only with the screams of seagulls outside, it felt more than just eerie.  
  
Eventually, though, after what felt like eternities of him just staring at her with fear in his eyes, fear of ending up like his mother, exposed to the humans and kept as a trophy to be looked at, she released merely a little squeak. And ripped the curtains from their support on the ceiling. But aside from that, she seemed to fare herself well, even though everything about this situation had his instincts screaming to get away from her, out of this pool, out of this palace, back into the safety of his home and the sea in which he could outswim them all and flee the danger. Except on land, without his legs, he was vulnerable, an animal injured on the hunt, and he couldn’t take any risk now.  
  
His lips parted to try to say a word, yet all that was released was some clicking sound, reminding him again of how his physiology had changed too much, had affected even his vocal chords to the point it was hard to talk in the ways he was supposed to with someone like her; someone human. Yet it seemed enough to draw her attention and get her out of her shocked state, albeit he wasn’t exactly certain seeing her crumble to her knees was better than just having her stare at him like an exhibition piece. “You- Your legs-” She started, and it was so obvious how much she tried to regain her composure it nearly ached his heart, yet he couldn’t hold back the shyness overcoming him that had him tugging his tail in a bit.  
  
It must look comical, if he had an outside point of view, maybe he would even laugh at himself, the way a proud mer like him curled in on himself in a bathtub that was surely supposed to be big for humans but with his original physiognomy was barely offering enough space for him. Feeling so violative, trapped in a whole different world, with his only hope of not getting exposed being on her right now, he felt queasy, uncomfortable, and yet he could only anticipate each of her words in hopes of her promising to keep this, him, a secret.  
  
Instead she asked, “Are you a witch too?” And it sounded funny, the way she asked this, as if she had to be wary and yet was curious, not unlike him, but he wasn’t exactly certain what a witch was supposed to be so he could only tilt his head questioningly to hope for her better explanation. “My mom. She said our neighbor is a witch. That auntie, she- she never aged, you know? Her hair was white like snow - or sea foam. If she’s like you, I guess it must be like sea foam then? Mother said that auntie had magical abilities, that she could talk to animals and would kill innocent men who fell for her trap… But she could dance, oh, she could dance so beautifully…”  
  
A woman with white hair, who never aged. His own mother was like that, Zhengting realized, she had white hair, skin so pale it looked like the glowing moon, her tail a luscious lack of color that looked quite like the foam of waves and the very suggestion, that this stranger woman could be like his mother, in terms of looks and abilities, had him surging forward to look at the girl in front of him with urging eyes. After Zhong’s stories, this was the closest he had ever gotten to the knowledge of his aunt, and even if it turned out not to be his own aunt, the very knowledge of this girl being no longer afraid of him was reassuring. Or maybe just a bit less afraid.  
  
He could see how she had startled at first, with his sudden movement, but she hadn’t flinched much neither had she run, and now it was all too easy to see tension bleed out of her shoulders and her focus shifting to him, to his new looks. “Can I- Can I touch you?” Her words were soft, gently spoken, and the way she looked at his nail made it quite obvious she didn’t think of touching his shoulders but he couldn’t yet quite take the risk, he only looked up at her first and hesitatingly raised one finger to his lips, imitating the way he had seen Ziyi scolding Xukun to stay silent when the three of them were out late on one of the balconies. She seemed to understand, though, and he was incredibly grateful for when she promised, “I won’t tell anyone! I swear! I’m not- Auntie told me stories of mermai- people like you. And how you avoided humans. So I won’t tell!”  
  
It was all he needed to hear to allow himself to flash her a bright smile, considerably, not the best idea by the way she twitched a bit, now that his teeth were all sharp fangs again, made to tear things and bodies apart, not like human teeth made to grind down on food. But as he relaxed back against the edge and let his tail flop out onto the floor next to her, he could see a similar behavior in her, and in how she so carefully moved forward her hand to trace it along the edge of the webbing. The movement so gentle it had little trembles go along the fine skin beneath her touch, it was not uncomfortable, not ticklish, but so gentle it was new to him, and so awfully soothing.  
  
Minutes passed of her just gently caressing his fin and then she moved up a bit, towards the scales that were still submerged by water, to explore them with timid touches while asking, “Is that why you behave so oddly? Because you were born in the sea that you don’t know how we humans behave?” She gave him an innocent look, waiting for a mute response that came in him nodding his head. Nodding or shaking, it was all he could do to answer her questions, and there were a few more of the likes that came from her lips before finding a resolution in, “Then I can teach you, if you want. I’ll try to make you familiar with everything you don’t know. But in exchange…”  
  
His eyes were wide as he looked at her, waiting for her conditions, finding himself mesmerized by the brightness of her smile for a moment when she said, “Once you can talk like that auntie, you have to tell me about what your life is like. The way she talked about your kind was so beautiful, I don’t think I could ever get tired of hearing more.” And that, he figured, that was something he could easily comply to. 

  


｡･:*:･ﾟ’★,｡･:*:･ﾟ’☆

  


As it turned out, having a tea with the Queen was not quite as uncomfortable as he would have imagined. If the awkward silence and the uncomfortable clothes were excluded. Considering him still not being able to talk anything, it had cut most of the conversations short, so only the thought of how Jieqiong - as he thought the girl from his bathing time had been called - had promised to support him on this little journey of his, and had given him a crash course of an afternoon tea before, had made that situation somewhat more bearable. In the end, it had not been all that unlike the situations he had experienced with his own father once they had grown apart over the topic of his humane interests, further amplified of being proposed the crown, but it had a bit of a bittersweet tang.  
  
Quite as bittersweet as knowing how he could relate to Ziyi, and yet he was not able to communicate as much, even as he fell with his back against the door from the strain of walking after regaining his legs mere hours ago. Only a sigh escaped him, and even that got stuck in his throat when he saw the prince’s concerned expression upon looking up. Since when had Ziyi even been standing there? had he listened in on that mute conversation with his mother? It was frustrating to not even know whether that pitying gaze was for the pain that must be evident on his face or the vice versa of what Zhengting felt, this weird sympathy for being stuck in an awkward situation with a ruling party of a whole kingdom. Whatever it was, his pain or the awkwardness, he didn’t like the idea of the human prince to think about it, instead he braced his shoulders and pushed forward to reach for that bigger hand to take into his, squeezing it reassuringly.  
  
“The maid said you had an incident in the bathroom earlier,” the earthbound said and it was confusing, because Zhengting couldn’t tell whether it was a question or a statement, yet he nodded his head regardless in a means of affirmation. “I actually wanted to show you something but now I’m not sure you-”  
  
Before, he might have doubted that being mute and cutting someone’s speech off would work together, yet it did, was done so by his merely stepping forward until their chests were nearly touching and his eyes were expectant as he looked at the earthbound. Slowly he could feel a smile tugging up his own lips while watching how Ziyi’s gaze slowly softened, until their expressions were mirror images that slowly warmed his cold water tempered heart. Even when feeling nimble fingers undo his tie, he didn’t break the gaze, only waiting for the explanation of, “We’ll leave the palace so you have to be dressed but it definitely won’t be… this.”  
  
This. A whole stiff suit and more layers of clothes than the mer would have ever thought possible, it had him smelter and trapped and he hated the tightness of these dresses but so well aware of basic principles, he had just sucked it up even as Jieqiong had helped him put them on. In that way she reminded him of his sisters, the way she so gently cared for at least him, it made him long for Xuanyi to play with his hair like she had done as they had been children, when there had not yet been another girl for her to dote on. Had him miss the cuddle sessions with Xiao or the races he’d start with Meiqi. Missed making sure the youngest ones like Yiren or Aisha were getting their share of food with so many hungry boys around or to bring them jewelry when he found some drifting down to the ground of the sea.  
  
All that was washed away as he allowed himself to be lead around the palace by Ziyi, his eyes trained on their still entwined fingers and the tie the human borne held in the other, guided through the maze of hallways until they had arrived at his room. Just in front of the door they stopped, a skittering halt that had him nearly stumble thanks to how his legs still behaved but he thought he managed quite well.  
  
“There’s some clothes inside for you. I’ll just wait here for you to finish up,” the somewhat taller muttered and the absurdity of it made Zhengting grin to himself as he pushed into his room. It made no sense for the inky haired to get so worked up about undressing when, for one, they were both men and, on the other hand, already on their first night he had been more than just naked while within the prince’s arms. It was endearing, in a way, for he was not certain whether appreciating such a little deed should be normal when he was used to nudity so much and not aware of human ways with their dress codes. Except for that, apparently, they were no fans of walking around nude, much to his dismay, so he fought his way out of all these clothes and into another set of, with fabric more loose and offering much more freedom, the pants wide and airy, only the waist tapered and he didn’t mind that much, even conveniently got to messily push the shirt linen inside that would only bother him walking around.  
  
One more reason to have definitely done right in this was upon stepping out again, seeing how inky eyes skipped down to his waist, the longitude of his legs, and it made his heart flutter as much as it had him tilting his head aside in consideration. This kind of gaze was not new to him, but normally it came from noblemen having heard of his beauty that was rivaled only by a mere handful of his siblings as well. Then again, he had never before considered how the influences of a being a Witch of the Sea would affect his visuals, the reason for his pale skin, hair and tail. He wondered whether this very expression meant the same in human terms.  
  
Something he could still think about on the way, he figured, as he nudged his hand against Ziyi’s, satisfaction bubbling within his stomach when his fingers were grasped and, once again, he was lead around the hallways, downstairs this time, until they arrived at a place he had not seen before. Wei was happily wagging her tail already, jumping around a bit, her ears flapping around, and then she was joined by a way bigger animal, furry paws, yes, but overall their hair seemed to be more stubby, their necks and behinds excluded.  
  
“Have you ever ridden a horse?” The prince asked, and at least that gave him an answer as to what this animal was called, but he could only shake his head in return. It seemed to amuse the earthbound, who gave a quick explanation that made no sense to Zhengting at all. But what made sense to him was the two hands suddenly grasping his waist, having his eyes widen for a mere second before he found himself raised high into the air and being told, “Grab the saddle and move your leg over. That’s right, like that. And then put your feet in here and-” Having done as said properly, the mer noticed Ziyi stopping only when seeing his bare feet, but instead of a scolding or questions or the likes, there was only a softly amused smile directed at his naked limb and then quite literally shaken off.  
  
For another moment, the lavender haired watched how the prince moved onto his own horse, a bit darker in color, and the lifting up done in a way more elegant manner than his own, before he was addressed again. “I’ll take the reins for you. And we’ll take it slow for now, so just hold on well and try to move along a bit, alright?” It was a gentle advice, but the seaborne still felt thankful for it when the horse took the first step, shaking him up a bit, something he had to get used to at first and yet surprisingly easy to be comfortable with.  
  
Out of the castle walls and along the cliffside they made their way, Wei happily running ahead and then returning back, and with the easy pace it was a perfect opportunity to let his gaze roam around, towards the sea and a group of dolphins he could see in the distance, towards the houses that seemed to be more scarce on this side of the palace until he realized it were no mere living quarters but rather some for soldiers. The way they trained, with swords and other weapons, was quite impressive, way of their own underwater fighting that seemed to be focused mostly on using tritons of spears that could be elevated by the water but also did not bother while speeding with the streams, or more skin close weapons, like specially manufactured gloves that imitated the claws of their more cold-blooded relatives. It was arguably harder to fight while having to steer with a tale than balancing on two legs, though, he settled as he watched those few soldiers he could glimpse at while it lasted.  
  
So focused on taking in all his surroundings, he didn’t notice clearly where they were going until they had arrived at another pebble beach, similar to the one he already knew but not the same, and with the lack of the port it seemed way calmer as well. How the horses were still walking so comfortably was utterly fascinating to him, and had him leaning further out of his seating than he likely should but he couldn’t even help himself from doing that, mesmerized by those slender legs pushing on and on. At one point, though, they stopped, what meant Ziyi so gracefully pushing out of his saddle while Zhengting still felt like a clumsy duckling caught in his.  
  
There was little more for him to do than remain while he watched the inky haired grab the bags attached to the saddle and pull out some things, like a blanket to be spread out over the ground, and little wrapped things that were carefully lain out. Once most of it was done, the human turned, and seeing Zhengting still on his horse must have made him aware of the embarrassing one truth; he didn’t know how to get down. Partly because he also didn’t trust his legs to hold his waist.  
  
It made him feel pitiful, having to wait for Ziyi to approach and advise, “Push your leg onto this side, go ahead,” only to have those warm hands grab around his waist again and elevate his descent until he had his toes curling around the pebbles and his fingers into the dark fabric of another shirt. Again, they were close, too close, he remember Xukun had once teased them about that and while theoretically he was aware that he should be used to this, he couldn’t help the flutter of his already slow heartbeat that came up whenever they were so near.  
  
Probably he should feel more disturbed by how fragile his human body actually was, it felt weaker than his natural one, and normally he hated this state of vulnerability. Much to his family’s dismay, he had kept swimming around full speed even after he had been caught in an accident just days ago, that had lead to him to crashing into a formation of rocks and ending up with more than just bruised skin. But he had kept pushing on, not much in favor of his wounds, and perhaps this could be considered the same would he not know that his current pain was not caused by physical injuries. There was just one difference: before, he would have hated for anyone to dote on him, mostly ever only accepting his mother’s sweet caresses, but around Ziyi it felt way too easy to accept the weakened state of his current form. It was easy to feel protected, easier than ever before.  
  
What was even easier, though, was to follow the gentle prodding for him to move to the blanket and settle down, allowing him to watch over the horizon, the sea spreading out in front of him, the sun settling in the far distance. It was a sight he had loved even when he had not yet stranded upon land, the way that fine line of oceans and skies looked as if set on fire, such bright and unique colors.  
  
“You like the sunsets,” the human stated once settled next to him, and it was enough to make him already smile in joy as he nodded his head. It must have been quite obvious though, considering how he always moved to the same balcony within the palace around this time of the day, trying to catch sight of this unique end of the day again and again. And then he would watch the stars afterwards, observe their little twinkles in the dark.  
  
It was attracting on an intellectual level, to see how easily Ziyi could adapt, so talkative and playful with Xukun, he had even seen the prince around Zhangjing once, and the way those two treated each other was filled with love, brotherly affection, but now that the black haired was sitting next to him, who was involuntarily mute, it seemed to be such comfortable silence. As if it didn’t matter that they could no longer exchange words. Never had been able to.  
  
Wei, as he had found out, was almost easier to communicate with, relying on body language quite as much as the sharks he liked to swim with. Not to mention she was quite as affectionate as his beloved animals at home, now that he was able to nuzzle his face into her fur while watching how the little wrapped packages were unfolded carefully by the prince, revealing some different snacks. Even just from the sight of it he could assume quite some time had gone into planning this and so maybe he had been called dumb by his siblings before (more often than once too) but even he could figure this was not only about watching the sunset when that could easily be done at the palace too.  
  
Only that without language he had no proper way to ask about this, preferring to cuddle into Wei’s fur again and ruffle her silky checkered hair while the light surrounding them was slowly swallowed up by nighttime. Bite by bite Ziyi had him try through the different snacks - some cheese, smoked ham and bacon, some fruits and vegetables, lots of the things he had gotten to know about - and by the time he had everything tasted, a glass was pressed into his hand, filled with a sloshing red liquid that seemed to sparkle beneath the moon’s light.  
  
“It’s wine,” the earthborne explained, as if it would actually explain much, but the sight of the prince drinking it himself was enough to have even Zhengting try without further hesitation. It was sweet, not in the way some juice or sweets would be, but with heavy aroma that seemed to weigh down his tongue without any trace of bitterness to it. In a way, it was addicting, so he took another sip carefully, always mindful of keeping his free hand buried in the dog’s fur to keep her close.  
  
He tried to drink slowly, honestly had, but while his glass was already emptied and his body temperature had risen two degrees or three, the other’s was still half full and it would have prompted him to say something, or just poke his companion, were it not for a flash of light visible from the corner of his eyes. Curiously he looked up, observed how, one by one, stars seemed to fall down the skies, resembling rain and yet not quite, like luminescent fish scurrying around the waters yet with more inherent order. Merely a handful of seconds and already he felt as if he were in love with it all, with the mere sight that he could have never caught if he had remained under the sea, and suddenly he questioned whether the condition he suffered could actually be called a curse when it allowed him to see things like these.  
  
“I thought you might like it, since you also love to watch the stars,” Ziyi said next to him, and the mer hardly recognized these words spoken, still too focused on the show offered to them from above. “It’s really beautiful.” And maybe if he had turned his head at that time, if he had been less focused on the meteors, he would have noticed that the human prince was most definitely not looking at the stars himself.

  


｡･:*:･ﾟ’★,｡･:*:･ﾟ’☆

  


“I have an idea,” Jieqiong suggested one morning, because somehow in that short span of her figuring out about his kind of secret identity, she had gotten quite comfortable in using her position as some sort of excuse to pay him repetitive visits: to serve breakfast, as she had done right now, or some tea, sometimes she brought new clothes or she just asked about the sea under, as if he could explain much. That he had slowly gotten the hang of their language, and the differences between their writing and his own, had at least given him an advantage as to how he could sometimes jot down little notes about his original life to her, whenever he thought of it.  
  
It was actually a nice start into the day, climbing onto the windowsill to be able to look outside while the plates with bread and jam and fruits were in front of him, some warm tea and he had never before been aware how appreciative he could actually be for warm drinks and food; her sitting on a chair next to him and chatting about this and that or questioning him on whether he could actually talk to sea animals, which was still a bit of an ambiguous question. After all, he didn’t communicate with them in the same ways as he would have done with his peers, didn’t mean he couldn’t very well understand them though.  
  
That his way of answering had become more and more creative though - he had previously signed her he couldn’t actually talk to sharks by imitating a mouth with his hand and shaking his head at the same time - must have given her some idea for currently she presented him a book to take. On the cover a pair of hands was drawn, along with the title of Basics of Sign language, that had him slowly thumb through the pages out of interest.  
  
“It’s for people who are deaf or mute and who can’t communicate. It took me a while to find one because it’s not a common means of communication but I bought two so we can slowly learn on our own and then try to communicate slowly - what do you say?” She offered, with her eyes so bright it was nearly painful, yet the mere idea of her having gone out of her way to put so much effort into this warmed his heart. Absently he nodded his head, too distracted by the neat drawings of hands and the little descriptions of the words and their meanings underneath, at times saying how different gestures together would make up this certain word. The arrangement of alphabetical order made it easy for him to find the words he wanted, detecting the three gestures he needed and executing them in a clumsy order, a lift of his arm and the raise of his hand towards his mouth only to then gesture with that same hand at her. Clumsy just like the way he trained his speech diligently still, every night, regardless, she seemed to understand as she asked, “Thanks for breakfast?”  
  
That such little deed could mean such huge achievement he would have never thought, but as he saw how her eyes brightened with his gestures and a smile broke out on her face, he thought it actually meant something. At least as much as when he had trained fighting with Yixuan and had received a ruffling of his hair in appreciation, something he had never realized the warmth behind until he had received it on his own, Weizhe way more commonly on the receiving end of such gestures but it seemed natural, that in a family as grand as his there would be a pattern of playing favorites. After all, he also tended to dote more on Justin and Quanzhe and Cheng Xiao, used to confide more into Wenjun or Zeren or Meiqi than others, it was nothing they could avoid when it came down to it.  
  
“Should I inform the prince of this as well? He could try to learn with you and also understand you better, sir,” Jieqiong suggested and Zhengting was aware that, if approaching such topic logically, it would make most sense for him to share his new interest with Ziyi and involve his savior more. Only that the thought of how much effort the human had put into making him comfortable and teaching him what seemed to be the most basic of things made him consider this decision double. After all, the earthborne had gone as far as to get him a vocal teacher, admittedly, a friend of the prince, and the idea of using his actual voice to talk to the inky haired man was way more appealing than anything else. So, irrationally, he clutched the book to his chest and shook his head for, no, he wanted to use his voice to talk to the prince, and he wouldn’t stop trying to get there. This, sign language, it was a thing for Jieqiong and him instead.  
  
This much he wanted to convey to her, so he gave her a bright smile before picking up some fruit to put between his lips and thus focusing on his food again. Until she asked, “Are all merfolk like you? Does everyone’s hair match their tail?” And it was a question so cute and innocent he couldn’t help grin at it as he shook his head before he signed her to get him something to write. Equipped with feather, ink and paper, he drew a rather poor impression of half fish and half human but he marked the head and the tail and then wrote down some examples for hair. Like his mother, who was even whiter than him, or Meiqi, with her golden tail that seemed to be on equal terms with Justin’s hair but in return, they couldn’t be more different: with his younger brother’s emerald scales and her silvery grey hair. Mia, who had lavender hair just a tad more intense than his but a glittery black tail that betrayed none of her elegance, while his eldest brother seemed much like the very image of their father, with a royally blue tail but inconspicuous black hair.  
  
All in all, it was a whole mess, and even just trying to write them all down gave him a headache so he just handed her the paper he had scribbled down upon and ate some more bread while waiting for her to finish. Her next query, though, caught him by surprise and had him blench at the realization that he could not answer exactly, “How many siblings do you have exactly, sir?”

  


｡･:*:･ﾟ’★,｡･:*:･ﾟ’☆

  


Wearing pants still felt uncomfortable to him, albeit Ziyi must have figured how the loose type - slacks, as Jieqiong had called them - were much rather to his preference than the somewhat tighter ones the prince himself wore. Those were a minor sacrifice to bear now that they were outside at what he had noticed was called the market, with their various stalls of foods and trades that seemed so highly interesting to look at one by one. It reminded him a bit of what they had had for his father’s birthday, one of the few big celebrations they held every year for, naturally, celebrating each and every heir’s birthday was not an option unless they wanted to spend half the year stuck in a celebratory cycle.  
  
Whereas he knew most of what those stalls under the sea had to offer - exotic pets, revolutionary snacks, beautifully crafted jewelry - these things right in front of him were all new to him. Built within an abandoned shipyard, there were stalls upon stalls, and the waves were greeting them at the low of the hall of where the ships had originally been pulled out of the water. It was a construction he had seen in drawings in books, yet all too many new words for him to understand what had been written, these little aids of illustrations had gotten him hooked regardless.  
  
Nearly as much but not quite as the offerings at one of the stalls he had crouched down in front of, his hands supported on the low table as he looked at the figurine of a horse, colored in bright red that faded out into clear glass, the mane a light swallowing black and the sheer craftsmanship behind it was amazing. He had seen carvings of animals before, yes, but usually those had been out of wood or metal that had discolored from the time under the sea, never had he seen one made of glass, making it all the more fascinating.  
  
“We make them from one piece of molten glass, pretty man,” the older man holding the stall explained, voice a bit hoarse from age and with an accent that made it hard to discern all words spoken at first. “It’s an old tradition where I come from, a secret recipe, so to say.” At that, the shop owner laughed but it was not a joke Zhengting found himself able to follow. “It’s only five copper coins, for someone as pretty as you, pretty man.”  
  
Were five copper coins much? Little? He wasn’t entirely certain as to what to think of it so he could throw a gaze seeking for advice at Ziyi standing a few feet away, conversing with another shop owner currently about… whatever it was. The mer had been too intrigued by the glass sculptures to pay much attention and, in return, the prince must have left him behind easily once realizing how distracted the seaborne guest was by those pieces of art.  
  
As it were, without the inky haired man’s help, the oceanbound could only offer the man a wry smile, an expression he hoped conveyed his apology upon his turning around and stumbling over to the prince. Too much time must have passed of him staying low towards the ground, mixed sensation of needle-like prickling and the ever known bone crushing pain coursing through his legs causing his steps to be a bit wobbly. Without thinking much of it, he clung to his host’s arm, looking for support, but not expecting the prince to look at him with a gentle smile before freeing that very same arm and wrapping it around the mer’s waist enhancing his slenderness through the seam of the pants. The touch and the strength undermining it were a welcome support, though, while Zhengting let his gaze travel around some more.  
  
Unknowingly, his gaze drifted back to the stall offering pieces of glass, past the horses he had previously admired over rows of drinking glasses and to jewelry of all kinds: there were single-colored rings, sparkling beads for the ears or the neck, bracelets of blunt shards and necklaces with pendants looking like molten colors. It was fascinating, that such things existed, that they could be made, but humans seemed to be more creative in that aspect. In many aspects. Things up here seemed to be so overdone, so extraordinary and ostentatious; they carried little of the simplicity the mer were used to. Beds with their wooden frames and carvings and those stuffed fabrics to make lying down comfortable while he was used to sleep on beds of moss or soft corals. Food that could be saved warm or cold, the many different drinks, but all he had known before were the flesh of shells and kelp spun thinly. So much inherent creativity he couldn’t help being amazed with every little thing.  
  
Was it because the world under had less opportunities thanks to their surroundings being so wet and never changing? or was it for humans thrived off the luxuries? Just the amount of fabrics he had already seen on this market, delicate ones that looked like nets decorated with flowery designs and heavy ones that were hardly foldable but carried the most intricate of designs. He still didn’t understand why humans didn’t just walk around naked like the merfolk did. Apparently, even his strict refusal to wearing shoes was considered something unusual but the mere idea of squeezing his toes into tough leather when he could just enjoy the freedom of feeling warmed up stones or sleek marble beneath his soles seemed lunatic.  
  
“Do you like the glass so much?” Ziyi suddenly asked, voice so close to his ear it drove shivers down his spine and nearly had his knees buckle from the sensation of it, something that would have been way easier to go by unnoticed were it not for the proximity between them. Yet there was no following teasing, only gentle eyes looking at him and awaiting his answer, or maybe not, for the prince already steered him back towards the shop and looked through the jewelry shortly. Without hesitation, something was plucked off the walls and Zhengting didn’t even get to see what it was.  
  
“Buying something for your pretty man?” The vendor asked again, delighted sparkles in his eyes while accepting the payment and tying the mysterious piece of jewelry into a bag of velvet before handing over the change. The few coins were denied by the prince with a polite wave of the hands. “I would recommend keeping him close like this or other people will hunt after the beauty that is his, my prince.”  
  
“I’m aware,” was all the inky haired man replied and Zhengting should probably feel more disturbed by being talked about like this but he was used to it, used to how his beauty had been admired at home and blind to the gazes that were thrown at him here. Even more so when he was way more taken by what could be hiding within that little bag in the human’s grasp. “Let’s look around some more and then we can get you something you eat,” the prince added, this time directed at the mer who gave a quick response of nodding his head.  
  
This much walking around, as they did for walking along the rows of stands within the market, was slowly taking a toll on his limbs, though, not used to the continuous strain of longer endurance it had him claw his fingers into Ziyi’s pristine white shirt without realizing. As much as his gaze traveled around and he was distracted by the sight around them, there was no denying physical reactions once his knees gave in and he nearly toppled down onto the floor where it not for his beside’s steady grip on him. Somehow, he found himself pressed even tighter into the human’s side, the lack of space between their bodies sending his heart into a limbo and his organs onto a spiral of ocean streams while yet remaining in the same spot.  
  
“Hey,” the somewhat taller called out softly, adjusting their positions so they could face each other, light frown disturbing that awfully handsome face right in front of the mer’s nose. “If you were in pain, you should have said something. Do you want to take a break?”  
  
Every step will feel worse than the one before. Without noticing, the pain had built up within him, and the idea of going on now that the throbbing ache was no longer compartmentalized at the back of his thoughts he wasn’t certain he could indeed continue. So he nodded his head slowly, sheepishly looked down at the slivers of revealed pale skin from where the pearlescent buttons had come undone, while waiting for further guidance on the situation. He didn’t expect to suddenly be lifted up, though, in the same manner of their first night, arms hooked beneath his knees and wrapped around his shoulders with an ease that he was not certain to blame on his lack of weight or that then awfully appealing display of strength. So maybe he was surficial in that aspect, in feeling attracted to pretty faces and to power but underwater, when no one had really caught up to his speed, to be so easily picked up and overwhelmed was doing things to that slowly beating organ within his chest he wasn’t actually certain were healthy.  
  
People parted for them, be it for Ziyi’s title of a prince that seemed to be easily recognized but never lead to any threats, or because of Zhengting having to be carried around, but it didn’t matter much when soon later they reached some sort of bistro, located at the lower end of the hall that was closer to the water, some sort of wooden terrace, where he was lowered onto an old workstool, a barrel serving as improvised table. In that sense, the little shop had charm, looking everything like the mixture of dockyard workplace and tavern alike, but the dish presented to him was anything but. There was a sloshy pink liquid in a wooden cup and some fried dough covered in sugar.  
  
“The cook is from overseas, he never shares his recipes but the treats are a favorite during the market,” the prince explained, going off on some tangent about what exactly it was, about fillings and special ingredients and fruit freshly ground into milk. The mer was nearly certain these words were not born from a need to share, much rather is was a means of distractions and with pink dusting his cheeks, he had to realize such strategy was working. All too easily he was lulled in by the prince’s soft tone, more focused on the sound of than the actually spoken words but maybe he should have listened for the first bite he took of the small fried dish had his eyes widen in astonishment. A satisfied hum escaped him as he looked at his host, holding the other half of the little snack out to his aider, a smile nearly splitting his face in half when it was eaten out of between his fingers.  
  
It wasn’t until they were nearly through half of the little things, surely having tried every filling once so far, that the human spoke up again, “If your voice sounds that well from just some noises over food, I’m afraid of what it will do to me once you get to talk, Theo. Are you getting along well with Zhangjing?”  
  
And that was a funny question, because he had learnt a lot of the vocal sounds throughout the passing afternoons from the court singer, but he stubbornly refused to talk to the other. So far, most of his conversations were in inept sign language with Jieqiong, still, something they slowly but commonly got better at, but where it concerned his real voice, as close as the human version would be to it, he wanted Ziyi to be the first to listen to it. Yet he nodded his head in conformation, progress was still progress, albeit reassurance settled within his guts only when feeling another set of fingers take hold of his, and then the tables turned and he found himself at the end of digits feeding him. 

  


｡･:*:･ﾟ’★,｡･:*:･ﾟ’☆

  


It was a rainy day. During his stay so far, he had only once or twice experienced a light drizzle that woke up the flowers and greens so beautifully but this time around it seemed to be a full out shower. “Raining cats and dogs,” as Jieqiong had called it in the morning when bringing him breakfast and some warm water to wash up. After she had experienced one more time how much getting into the tub and shifting his appearances put a strain on his body, she had suggested changing it up to just a washcloth and both clean and scented water. This, at least, he could admit was being way easier to execute at home where being surrounded by water basically eradicated the need to clean one’s body like this.  
  
Now that he was cuddled up in the library, wrapped into an absurdly soft blanket and with a fire lit beneath the mantle, the soft pitter patter of water against the windows, he couldn’t exactly say it was a bad weather though. It was calming, in a way, even though the book he was currently reading was making his lips curl in amusement. The Stories of a Sea. According to this, merfolk were cruel creatures that lured fishermen into drowning by the sound of their singing alike, they would jump higher than dolphins to get onto ships and tear humans apart. It was funny in the way it was plucked out of the air.  
  
Admittedly, creatures like his distant cousins would indeed gobble up humans - the prettier the better, as he had heard the saying going - but where they lived it was a fight of eat or be eaten. Even the only family of dolphins he knew to be bloodthirsty lived among these peers. It kind of explained why they got along, he figured to himself. The cold waters seemed to bring out the most cruel of their instincts, though, and personally, he wasn’t exactly keen on visiting them. Despite his own teeth being razor sharp, his speed unrivaled, and knowing how to fight with the artificial claws, he wouldn’t put it on himself to be able to take any of them on in battle, be it a playful fight or a challenge of life and death.  
  
One of the merriest stories was of the Kraken though, the oversized octopus that would destroy ships or pull them under the sea as a whole. It was farcical, entirely ridiculous, because he had met that creature once, a lovely little thing, nearly too shy to even approach them as she had been afraid of getting poked by his guards’ weapons and yet so innocently curious in the way she had approached them regardless for she must have not seen the mer for a long, long time. It had taken some effort and time to have her yield and start talking to him, explaining how she had been so fascinated by a sparkling school of fish she had lost her way and his heart had so effortlessly softened for her. He wondered whether she was still doing fine, whether she felt lonely now, whether he should visit her sometime. Except, right, that was not really a question at the moment, with his legs still intact and entangled with the fuzzy fabric right now.  
  
There were a lot of lovely creatures named in this book and so heartlessly disreputed, but what amazed him more was the story he could find of a sighting of a mermaid. A girl who had fallen into a pond and emerged with a tail, a girl so pale she had been mistaken as a ghost, exhibited in a circus and then, as if she were the lingering soul of a human indeed, she had mysteriously disappeared one night, never to be seen again. A mermaid so beautiful she put everyone to shame but her features and pale traits so otherworldly it seemed eerie. Obviously there was no need to further continue reading that story, not when he already knew who it was about, not when it was her blood that was flowing through his veins.  
  
As if perfectly cued, he heard the clicking sound of the door at the same time he closed the book, curiously turning his head around to see Ziyi walking towards him, a tray with two cups, a tea can and some biscuits in hands. The afternoon treat was placed on the table in front of them while the prince settled next to him, only shortly glimpsing at the book within his hands before pouring some of the hot drink. “Are you reading about sea tales now because it’s where I found you or are you just curious?”  
  
It wasn’t a question he could exactly answer, he had picked the book because it had been intriguing but, more so, he had been wanting to know about how the humans perceived their kind nowadays. Closer to nowadays, the book was also some several years old, and since the author had said to have seen Zhong while still being a child but the image of her still haunting him into old age, it must contain stories way older than the date of publishing. Instead of a proper answer, he just smiled vaguely as he exchanged the bound papers with the steaming cup of porcelain to take a timid sip.  
  
“Do you want to hear a strange story?” The human suddenly proposed, it had Zhengting looking up from nibbling on a cookie and quickly snatching another so he could lean back into the cushions and expectantly look at the prince. “That night that you saved me… I was returning from the journey to another country. Because I am at that age” - and Ziyi said “that” as if it actually meant something - “my parents sent me a handful of kingdoms throughout the last months. They want me to marry but I guess my father got sensitive in age, he wants me to get along with my future spouse so he has me meeting possible candidates first. It was another one that didn’t exactly play out. Not that that princess wasn’t nice, she was just no one I could imagine my future with.”  
  
So far, the mer reasoned, it wasn’t entirely a new story to him. He had heard it from Xukun before, been advised to be careful with his expectations because no matter what, the prince had his responsibilities to follow. Much like he would have had his own had he not abandoned his home. For that he admired the earthborne, and also that best friend of his, because both were mindful of their tasks while he had selfishly followed his own interest. No matter that it had been originally been an accident.  
  
“When that storm hit, though, I realized that maybe a marriage with a foreign princess might be a strain but being alive is still better than drowning. I thought it would be over by the time the ship broke apart.” The mood turned more solemn with these words, and the underwater prince wasn’t exactly certain he liked this kind of atmosphere, filled with too many burdens, the kind of which he had also tried to escape. It was ironic that such thoughts would resurface on a day that was equally as stormy as the night he had first caught glimpse of the human. “When I woke up in the morning, and I saw you- You were everything that seemed to hint at hope, looking so bright under the morning sun and more beautiful than any princess I had seen until then. Or prince, for that matter.”  
Shouldn’t he be used to compliments? Honestly, Zhengting was quite certain he should be used to charming words, yet whenever they left the inky haired’s lips, he felt shy as he had never felt before, felt the heat creep up his necks and the tingle within his chest. He was quite aware he looked good, these feelings merely left him baffled.  
  
“But the crazy part is yet to come,” Ziyi warned, taking a deep inhale to prepare for the next words, “Xukun said I was disillusioned because of the shock but I am more than certain that that morning you didn’t have legs. Your lower body was covered in scales and then you slipped into the water and it looked like a whale submerging. And I found you in the water as well. Though, Kunkun said I might just be under too much stress to think this much…”  
  
In a way, it was cute how his opposite took the burden of breaking down such story off the mer’s shoulders. All he had to offer was a little pensive smile and an effort into overcoming his shocked state about possibly having been seen. Thank his father’s triton for the prince being so very reasonable, not believing into fairy tales and making this situation an easier one for him. Rather than nodding his head or shaking the ideas off, he turned to the human borne and slipped a bit closer on the sofa, slowly raising his hand in case the approach wasn’t appreciated but eventually his fingertips met the high of stranger cheekbones. For another second, he bit his tongue before, with hoarse voice, uttering, “Zi...yi…”  
  
Speaking like this still felt weird, no matter how much he had tried to train his voice at night in bed, with the sounds muffled by his pillows, the words sounded too smooth and fluid compared to the harsher sounds of his native tongue he was used to. But the effect they had, by the seven seas, he wanted to imprint that picture in front of him into his memory for all time, the way those dark orbs slightly widened and seemed to be filled with stars suddenly, how pale skin glowed nearly golden thanks to the flames in the fireplace, shadows coming from the windows on the other side leaving an intricate dance on the cheek he was touching still.  
  
It didn’t go unnoticed by him how those dark orbs slipped down for a second, not meeting his own eyes but looking further beneath. Irrationally, he tried to figure just where that gaze had slipped, let his own travel lower, along that straight bridge of a nose that seemed unreasonably cute on normal days but quite sharp with the play of shadow and light, getting caught on a small mouth but with lips looking intangible soft, perfectly plush, and crazily inviting. Royal blood had often demanded him to be brave and forward, to speak his mind and hide his weaknesses, even though he didn’t mind to also just let go of everything, mostly when he was alone in his secret hideout of a cave. Now it came as an advantage as he bravely leaned forward, having the tips of their noses short of collision by tilting his head the slightest bit aside. Yet he stopped when their lips were barely a paper’s width apart, the sensation of their breaths mingling exhilarating, the heat against his skin driving shivers down his spine. And then he didn’t have to wait anymore, for Ziyi bridged the last bit of distance between them, a shy press of lips against each other, barely there and yet so tangible.  
  
Time seemed to freeze for a moment, if he strained his ears enough, used his repressed instincts, he was certain he could feel that faster human heartbeat speed up even more while his own felt just painfully intense within his chest. Once it began to run again, Zhengting pulled back the slightest bit, not even close to distancing himself for an inch when, like a rubber band, control seemed to be lost with a snap and suddenly long fingers were curled around his nape and waist, keeping him close while a second kiss became more insistent.  
  
No longer mere shy pressure, lips moved against his and Zhengting tried his best to imitate it, this expression of affection so very new to him but it felt good, better than anything he had ever experienced again. It had his skin burning and prickling wherever they touched, not in the painful manner his legs would but pleasantly, and it was so easy to fall into this lure, to let his body rest against its match and part his lips when a tongue prodded against them and if before he had thought that a kiss of closed mouths had been intense, clearly he had never experienced what their dance of tongues could awake within him.  
  
Before long, a pitiful whine freed itself from deep within his throat, way less imminent than the lack of air within their lungs that had them pull apart but stay so close. The mer felt anything but robbed of his breath and thoughts alike, drained of his energies and instead filled with an urge to just be close to the prince with blown pupils and incredibly dark eyes, lips slick with saliva and swollen but looking more the image of debauched beauty than ever before.  
  
“Ziyi,” he whispered again, breathless but with steadier voice, and it had the human beneath him smiling brighter than ever before. Faster than he could react, he was tugged down into a tight embrace. Not that he did mind because, actually, the prince made a perfect surface to rest on, for him to lay on with his face hiding at the crook of a messily dressed shoulder, his eyes closed and just inhaling the scent that was so naturally the earthbound. It was addicting; soothing and reassuring; he wanted to stay close like this for times to come and just drown in the proximity he was allowed to share with the one making his heart act in ways it never had before. 

  


｡･:*:･ﾟ’★,｡･:*:･ﾟ’☆

  


After this long while spent around, he had gotten used to being with each of the individuals - with Zhangjing, for his vocal training, with Xukun, for when the advisor joined them during late evenings, with Ziyi, when, well, whenever the prince had time - but it was different to have them all together at once. Simultaneously, he was introduced to some more people, to Fu Jing and Yanjun, who he had been told were the future of the military but then Zhangjing had leaned and advised, “Don’t join them during their drinking challenges. Never. They can pack a punch in several ways. And even the fishermen avoid trying to drink those two under the table.” Which, actually, seemed to be the whole reason of this gettogether.  
  
“Every first Sunday of the month this happens,” Jieqiong had explained in the morning, and somehow she had turned out to be a better advisor than even the best educated from his home, “where we appreciate the fishermen for bringing food to our tables and honor their commitment and efforts. The royal couple can’t join for safety reasons but the prince does his best to as long as he still can. It’s also a good time for him to bond with his future townsfolk.  
  
Now that he was attendant, he could understand what his charming confidant had been talking about. There were men of all sizes and appearances, ranging from barely children to old aged, yet they all carried with them a strength that seemed to never betray their occupation, the tiring work of heading out when the moon was at her peak and dragging heavy nets through the water to catch fish and nurture their home. Their daughters and wives, most often, would then sell them at the harbor or market or further work on them, pickle and dry and smoke them for the winter or make some wonderful dishes of them to sell to exhausted workers at the end of the day. But all of them seemed to respect their future ruler, paying a more than necessary regard even a few jars of mead or beer in, and it was seeing these gestures that gave away just how highly admired the royal family was among their home.  
  
“You have a longing gaze watching him,” a female voice suddenly whispered into his ear, not unkind but very much teasing as she continued, “Does he remind you of something or do you just- Ah! Ah, stop! Fuck, Yanjun-” When turning his head around, he could see what had made her curse, the man with a similar vibe as hers having taken her wrist and engaged her into a silly game of trying to twist the other’s arm that had them both swearing and laughing alike.  
  
“Don’t question it,” Zhangjing said opposite him, and it would be less suspicious were it not for the teasing glint within those flickering eyes, “But she had a point. Is it longing for our prince that is carried within your eyes or does he remind you of something you want even more?”  
  
“Reminds me of… home…” It was a struggle to say as much, his throat hurt from few words only and the alcohol was making his tongue heavy and weighed down within his oral cavern but whenever he finished a sentence, he felt accomplished of his own.  
  
“The festival?” The singer asked but upon a lack of response tried again, “Or is it the way they treat him?” Whatever it was, something about Zhengting’s body language had given it away but it was undoubtedly alike, the way the prince was treated in comparison to how his own family had been treated. His father and the Queens, naturally, they had been more respected, talked to with ease only by the elders, but his younger siblings, and especially the further ones from the title of Crowned, they had easily made playmates among same aged children. Each of his siblings had been treated with the respect their family had deserved but it had never been forced, it was peaceful, there were no protests or complains, it had been genuine, and it was so much like how they treated Ziyi at the moment.  
  
“You’re not suddenly proclaim to be a prince yourself and having fooled us for weeks, right?” His personal teacher still went on, jest obvious in his voice but it had the mer still tensing for a moment because, right, he was still a heir to a crown of his own. Although he was certain his father would not be a delighted man would he ever return, for he had been the fourth in a row to evade the crown and its burdens and by now way was this making being a ruler any easier. Not to mention that he would be the second son to just go missing, yet Sungjoo would still be more reachable thanks to being bound to the sea whereas he was free, elevated by a curse that seemed by all means to make equals of gain and loss.  
  
Maybe he would have been easier to be caught were it not for his sudden distraction, looking over towards a more reclusive corner that must have been hidden earlier by a bigger approach of people that had slowly trickled down. Then he hadn’t paid much attention but now he couldn’t help looking at the man with a stick of whatever material, held similarly to a feather but whereas a writing tool’s tip would scratch across paper, this particular tool was used to push ink into skin. It was easy to recognize what it would end up as when he looked around and saw the black lines woven into the fishermen’s skin, making him curious in particular.  
  
Distracted by the sight, he left his cup of wine behind to walk over, looking over the artist’s shoulder from a bit of a distance to watch how flowers were slowly carved into a woman’s calf, a striking difference to the bolder lines of the men around. Like hypnosis it was keeping him close by, watching how slowly the petals spread out and the little plants seemed to grow. Judging by how the woman curled her fingers around the table she was sitting on, it couldn’t be exactly pleasurable but it was intricate all the more. Before the mer had realized, the artist was putting his tool of paint aside and rubbed a cloth drenched with the sharp scent of alcohol over the bleeding flesh, then handing her a vial of oil to treat the skin, demanding for her not to scratch at the wounds and avoid too much sun and then she was sent off.  
  
As if having sensed his proximity, the artist turned around and assessed the seaborne with his big eyes, lips curling up around the corners while happily proclaiming, “You must be the prince’s rumored treasure. What a pleasure to meet you! Lu Dinghao and now you’ll hopefully tell me I can be at your service?”  
  
The onslaught of words was nearly too much for his brain but Zhengting braved through it, then threw a hesitating glance towards the prince’s seating, engaged in a talk with some giggling young woman. “Yes,” he answered slowly and returned his gaze towards the newly introduced Dinghao again, flashing a timid smile. “Feather. Here.” He placed his hand along the span of his right hip bone, not missing the intrigued glint within the artist’s eyes but before he could reconsider his decision, he was already signed to lay down and his pants were pulled down just far enough. Not that he personally would mind, he still didn’t understand why everyone was so afraid of showing their crotches, but even the man working pictures under the skin seemed to be considerate of revealing too much.  
  
From there, it seemed to pass in a blur. The constant pain within his legs was enough to hardly have him notice the pain spreading along where the needles were pushed deep into his skin, blind to how it must feel to others and the fascination was more than palpable radiating off the artist. On the other hand, while the decision might have been made on a whim, he couldn’t deny how it made him feel lighter slowly, wondering whether his blood released was actually letting his supposed magic escape. A feather, it was a little thing so light, and one day, he prayed, the steps he took with the legs underneath it would be quite as weightless as such little thing.  
  
Even on his own skin, it was somewhat hypnotizing, he could feel where the needles pricked his skin but, afraid of disturbing the process of art, he didn’t dare move his body to catch a glimpse. Still, he was aware of the hollers it awoke by the people surrounding him, some screaming about the prince’s treasure being a whole tease and quite daring, there were also female giggles when fainter steps went past him and, again, he didn’t understand how they were so ambiguous towards privates revealed. But what caught most of his attention was a deep voice resounding close to his ear, first a whistle and then, “Man, our prince sure is lucky. No wonder our big puppy is so taken with you. I’d kill for a lady having some ink there.”  
  
A look up and he recognized the face as the male counterpart of the future generals, Yanjun’s dimples taking the weight out of his words and whereas those had come across strong, how easily the tan male disappeared with a simple touch to his shoulder by a hand Zhengting could all too easily recognize gave away a more gentle nature. And then there was the softest voice of them all, and a fittingle tender caress of his cheek as Ziyi asked, “Does it hurt much? You shouldn’t have done this spontaneously, you’re not even sober.”  
  
Dinghao, further down on his body, laughed at that and pointed out, “Prince, I only ever customers after drinking. No one would do this voluntarily while sober.” It was followed by a dunking sound and then that wet cloth he had earlier seen was pressed against his skin, rubbing away on excess liquids, ink and blood alike, and then the process started up again.  
  
This time around, and until the finish, at least he was not alone for his personal savior remained next to him, sometimes joining some chatting of people approaching but even then, the fingers caressing the high of Zhengting’s cheeks remained, soothing him until it was all finished and the artist declared it an end. Immediately the mer sat up, curiously looking down at his own flesh and the feather that was spreading from merely a hand’s width away from his base towards the curve of his side, perfectly tracing the sharp edge of his hip bone. Once more the wet cloth was pushed along the black lines to disinfect the wound, followed by the same instructions he had heard being told to the woman from before him, yet he listened attentively and, next to him, even the prince seemed to do the same, taking the vial in his stead and pushing it into a pocket before familiar fingers helped dress him up again.  
  
“You’re full of surprises, Theo,” the human muttered under his breath, more to himself, yet the merman couldn’t help the embarrassed smile spreading across his features at these words. Instead he felt helpful towards the aid in his standing up and walking back to their tables, greeted by the other four whistling and clapping in admiration towards his deed.  
  
Later that night, there was another similar smile blooming along the line of his hips when a very much inebriated prince escorted an even more inebriated merfolk to his room. In front of closed doors, with Zhengting falling with his back against the painted woods, they exchanged another kiss, clumsy and wet, more tongue than lips, yet making his head dizzier than any sort of alcohol ever could. 

  


｡･:*:･ﾟ’★,｡･:*:･ﾟ’☆

  


The sea had a funny way of reclaiming what it owned. It was unyielding in the way it never let go of what belonged to it. Such was the realization Zhengting had to make only a few days after a moon’s turn of him being on land had passed. A restless night woke him up, it was painful, as if some sort of thread had been wrapped around his heart and the string was tugging him somewhere he needed to go. He didn’t bother putting on pants, merely slipped a dress shirt over his head, the kind that reached down to his thighs and threatened to slip down his shoulders any time, but the sun was not even illuminating the horizon so he had little fear of being found.  
  
His head was in a state of daze, he couldn’t think, his aching feet carried him by instinct towards wherever he was pulled, only the singing of the oceans giving away how he was getting closer to the sea. A sound that previously been so familiar to him, a constant in his life, now sounded foreign and like home alike, it made him feel estranged, as if he were a guest in his own house, and so far he had not even stepped into the sea.  
  
It didn’t take long but a few stumbles too many for him to reach the port, and now the sun was slowly getting closer to the line of sea kissing sky from beneath, setting that tender line alight and aiding him in his coming forth until he had reached one of the fishing boats already having returned. So early in the morning, his legs didn’t hurt much yet, in exchange, his heart did all the more upon the sight he was greeted with. In the tangles of nets and fish lied a tail to big to belong to what humans considered as food, and with a color that shouldn’t be inherent to the animals living closer to the shore. Not even a second it took for him to inhale sharply upon the recognition, that wonderful bronze he knew because that tail he had seen while the owner slipped into Meiqi’s room more often than not.  
  
He didn’t hesitate for even a second to jump onto the small ship and work his way into detangling everything surrounding the younger mer, until blonde hair was revealed and he hated it, it pained him, to see how dry Eunseo’s skin had already become. “Hey,” he whispered softly, caressing her cheek, but it did little rouse her.  
  
Neither would his efforts hold off any other people, already he could hear heavy footsteps, the sounds of boots hitting wooden planks further amplified by the distance towards the waves beneath, and it had him panicking. The boat might have been empty but the lamps were still lit and the fish not yet cleared, it was evident how the owner would return soon, and the hustle around the docks would start once more ships returned, husbands and wives working together to sort the fish and shells and then get them to the market, like a clock ticking right at his neck.  
  
“Eunseo,” he tried again, trying his best to imitate his mother tongue despite his changed vocal chords but there was no reaction from her, only shaky inhales of air and he was so thankful to the seven seas they could survive like this, breathing air. The problem was the lack of moisture, slowly and painfully she would dry out was she not moved back to the water but there was too little space to just throw her off board, she was too close to land and too exhausted to get back into safety on her own. She couldn’t do it on her own.  
  
Tears nearly welled up in his eyes at the realization of how bad she must feel, the empathy for her state heightened by his own fatigue. Little whimpers of pain escaped him as he wrapped his arms around her, hooking her elbows beneath her shoulders to lift her up despite the pain it caused his legs, because her life was more important than his imminent ache. It was troublesome, and he hated the weakness of his human form, not even being able to lift up her weight that would have mattered little to him under different circumstances, as he slowly heaved her off the boat and out onto the dock, making sure she wouldn’t collide with anything in an all too painful way.  
  
One time he had been lucky, the earlier steps had belonged to someone else, but a second encounter was never the same. Barely having managed to heave the aerose creature off the ship, with his arms hooked around her chest once again, he couldn’t deny how right there was someone standing a few meters down from him, closer to the landing and not blocking his way at least but, “Theo…? Is that you?” His eyes widened when he realized whose voice this was, and he figured he should be lucky he had been caught by Xukun and not a fisher who might attempt to steal Eunseo from him again, or whatever worse there could be. “What are you-”  
  
Zhengting could tell the exact moment the advisor realized just what kind of creature was within his arms, nimble fingers dancing closer to the sword attached to slender hips, and he could his heart beat fasten at the sight of it. “No!” Never before his voice had been as loud, and the younger boy must have noticed the same for he stopped, but it didn’t mean it lifted the weight of panic off the mer’s shoulders. “Kun, please… I can’t leave her- Not her-” He felt awful, knowing that he was using this time of confusion against the human but he couldn’t help it, not when his own kind was in danger, could only relentlessly take one tiny step after another further down the dock, towards the end, towards the sea deep enough to plunge into.  
  
“Theo,” the earthbound in front of him tried again, inch by inch approaching the secret prince dragging the unconscious figure of a mermaid along the wooden planks. Before, Ziyi had said that Xukun hadn’t believed him, it echoed through Zhengting’s mind now, that the young advisor had not admitted to the existence of creatures of the oceans, yet it seemed like irony that exactly this friend of the black haired had caught the seaborne prince at such precarious act.  
  
Already could the shifted merman feel the end of the planks beneath his feet, his heels edging on the bottomless air, and he couldn’t do much than give one desperate smile to the human in front of him, illuminated by the slowly rising sun and there was too much noise, too many fishers with their boats returning and catching the spectacle of the prince’s known friend with a woman with a fish’s tail within his arms.  
  
“Ziyi,” Zhengting called out towards the young man he was halfway towards calling a friend with, “I… love him…” And then, he allowed himself to fall backwards, into the salty water with Eunseo’s weight pulling him down, deeper and deeper and panic would have settled deep within his bones were it not for the call of the oceans. The sea always retrieved what she owned, and in his case it was his bane, the pain of his legs being stitched together, torn apart and growing into one, of thirty-something bones growing into vortices and growing into wings, of scales forcefully being pushed out of his skin. By the time the webbing spread along his fins and between his fingers, he was nearly unconscious from pain, but then his sight fell onto Eunseo whose arm he was still holding onto and he sucked the water deep into his body.  
  
For her, he had to go on, he had to brace the pain and get her back home. His grip was still tight on her as he rushed towards the surface with heavy strokes, letting her go just short of breaching the waves to jump out, and within the short second he caught sight of the docks, he could still see Xukun’s shocked figure, and for the shortest of moments their eyes locked. It hurt, the feeling of having severed too many bonds at once, but then he saw his sister’s friend beneath him and he couldn’t find it within him to regret it. A life was still worth more than his selfish desires, he decided, as he wrapped one arm around her middle and made his way back towards the city he had been born in. 

  


｡･:*:･ﾟ’★,｡･:*:･ﾟ’☆

  


Within hours of arriving back at his home and handing Eunseo over to the doctors, he found himself not only questioned but also kept under watch. Which, honestly, had been shocking at first: their prized crown prince was back, yet he was locked up? taken in by guardians? for what? had to remain stuck in one of the doctors’ practices while some guards - people who should know him - stood out at the window and door to keep him surveilled?  
  
In his head, there were only thoughts tumbling across another. He had given his chance of living on land up for Eunseo, and no way could he ever regret saving her life, he hadn’t done with Ziyi back then either. A life, still, was worth more than his desires. But back then he hadn’t been seen by other people, albeit the human had thought to have seen him with a tail, at that time the saved had been more out of it than sane. This time around, Xukun had very much seen not only Eunseo’s figure but also Zhengting’s, not to mention how many of the fishermen could have possibly caught sight of them.  
  
Was Xukun going to tell Ziyi? Would Ziyi even believe that story? Then again, Jieqiong had also seen his original shape, she could support such story no matter how crazy it might seem… A groan escaped him while he pressed the palms of his hands against his eyes, all this thinking was driving him crazy, his tail still felt off and his muscles sore after he hadn’t used them in so long. Overall, it wasn’t a good combination.  
  
At least he had been able to tell Kun what he thought of the human prince still, it had seemed worth it, at this one moment, it had felt like the most honest words he had ever spoken. Maybe before he hadn’t been certain, had acted on whims, had considered it a crush, but in this moment of having to decide what path to take, it had come over his lips so easily, so truthfully. He didn’t regret it, he only hoped his message would be delivered before he could return of his own. A chance that seemed to lower the moment he could hear his father’s booming voice echoing through the hallways, “What do you mean the crown prince is back but isn’t? Either he is or-”  
  
The King abruptly stopped once the doors had been so roughly pushed open, shock within those oceanic eyes that Zhengting could not understand until he followed his father’s gaze, down on his body and further and- The iridescent hue of his tail with its pale colors was no longer evident, was fading after the first third into an opalescent black reflecting in hues of pink and purple, as if it were a total turn around of his previous color scheme. White had been the sign of his mother’s blood within his vein but now it was fading out, no longer was he resembling a clan that had perished albeit still seeming unique among his siblings.  
  
“Father-” He tried, his own voice trembling as he pushed off the stone he had been sitting on but a single gesture of the King was cutting him off.  
  
“Get his mother,” the ruler of their kingdom demanded off the guard next to him, and before the soldier could even protest, the crowned repeated, in increasing volume, “Get his mother! Get Zhong!” Then, when the guard was gone, the prince found himself at the end of steely eyes again. “And you- Zhengting, just because you returned it does not mean your situation will become any easier because of this. Don’t you think it was enough Sungjoo ran away? Didn’t you have any semblance of responsibility when you should know just how dangerous this is for you? You could have been caught! You could-”  
  
The recently returned son thought of just how fast his mother must have race here, for his father had not even finished his speech when milky arms wrapped around him and had him toppling over from her rush. “My baby, my son- You’re back, my pearl!” All the emotions his father was so evidently holding back were openly shown by his mother who kept her arms around him and his frame tight against hers.  
  
For a moment, he just watched it, the flabbergasted expression on his father’s face for his mother’s unhidden worries, and then all tension seemed to ease out of the room, the king waved the guards off and then lowered himself onto a seat. “Zhong,” the King gently called out, not to reprimand her, as Zhengting observed, but to call for her attention to ask, “His tail…”  
  
That much seemed to ground his mother, and her unnaturally pale eyes scanned over his frame, it was making him uncomfortable with the intensity of it but then her arms were back around him, like shackles of love, she didn’t want to let go of him again, and he could understand her reasoning. No matter her having been the one to tell him about his heritage, it could never be easy to watch one’s son go, he was aware his step-mother mourned over her lost son still years now, and with every letter received, that exhausted heart of hers seemed to both flourish with love and perish in strain. She would not experience a return as the sea witch had.  
  
“We’ve never had a halfling before, my King, but… You know very well that my clan’s looks were resemblant of our abilities and if he no longer belongs to us in looks… I’m not sure he still possesses that aptitude of mine,” his mother whispered, the hurt in her voice born not only because of the pain it would cause the returned crowned prince but for it also meant a fastened exhaustion of her own bloodline.  
  
Silence filled the space between them all, a lack of words that only ached Zhengting more. If it was true what his mother had said, he had no means of returning to where he had been just hours ago still. No matter how soothing his mother’s embrace was, it could not ease the suffering that the thought of having found and lost love had brought over him. He had gotten comfortable with this new life of his, and now it was taken from him without any chance to ever say goodbye, and those few words lacking any explanation towards Xukun could hardly count.  
  
“Get him back to the palace, Zhong,” the ruler suddenly declared, moving up from his seat and moving one hand through luscious black hair that held none of that inky depth of Ziyi’s, too many blue hues under, like the oceans at night. It was a picture perfect contrast to one royally blue tail that still was so strikingly intense, owning little of the shifting hues of Zhengting’s. “I’ll have to talk about this with others. And you. At least if you say he can’t shift anymore, I guess I don’t need to worry about his getting away anymore…”  
  
A flash of blue hues was the last he saw of his father and maybe he shouldn’t have expected any more than this, his father had always been more distant during hard times. That didn’t mean it wouldn’t send a painful pang through his heart, lessened only because of his mother’s fingers carding through his hair so gently.  
  
“Oh, my pearl,” her gentle voice echoed through his figure, soft shudders wrecking through him because maybe he had been more homesick than previously known, aware of how much he had missed the comfort of his home, not just celebrated the lack of burdens on his shoulders, but for the first time it seemed to punch him right into his face. “You look so different now… My poor little boy…” Her sighs weighed heavy on his bones, maybe more so than the awareness of his new figure. If what she had said was indeed true, if he never could return to above, maybe now he should accept that indeed there was no longer any escape to the crown. If it was still meant for him. Ziyi had managed to, and if this one human could so elegantly wear the burden of a country’s future on his shoulder, the least he could do to honor his memories was to try as well.  
  
“Come on, son,” she broke the silence after a while, drifting off their shared seat as she took his hand, pushing webbing aside to interlace their fingers to pull him along. “Let’s go home and dress you appropriately again.”  
  
Home. He had never thought about just how much such single word could actually mean. It warmed his heart, but as his mother pulled him out of the house and towards above the houses to head for the palace directly, he couldn’t help looking further up, towards where the sun broke through the waves and illuminated their town. 

  


｡･:*:･ﾟ’★,｡･:*:･ﾟ’☆

  


“I once heard the sea is kind, you know?” His gaze drifted over to Meiqi next to him, who must have escaped this dinner’s celebration quite like him. Unlike what he originally had expected, his father had gone all out to make this feel like a merry return but through all of it, he had felt that steely gaze on him. It had been making him highly uncomfortable and Seungyoun’s jesting “Welcome back to the crown just in time” had definitely not made this any easier to bear.  
  
Neither did his kid sister’s words, he was still assured that the sea was cruel. A possessive lover who did not deal with sharing, what was hers was hers and it was never to leave. The sea got back at who she had lost, it was the reason all his steps had ached, for he belonged to the sea and not to the land and it had been his punishment to leave her behind. Still, he wanted to know the younger’s reasoning so he encouragingly tilted his head aside.  
  
“I heard it by accident, just where you have gone exactly. Father, and your mother, they did well at keeping your whereabouts a secret and about what you can do,” the blonde explained, her tail shyly flipping against the wall they were sitting on, as if to express how embarrassed she was by having listened in on the adults. The brightness of her scales only reminded him of how his own had darkened, merely the area of his hips and what would have been his upper thighs reminding him of his previous hues and even there, he had found the shadow of the tattoo prevailing on the pale of his hues, a dark shadow along where before his hip bones had prevailed. “Your mother said you had been using up the time of your abilities slowly. So I think the sea was kind to you, Zhengting. She called you back before you would be stuck on land, cursed to walk in pain for all the time of your life that was left. You would never be able to come back home because you would drown, you would be away from your blood. She has been kind to you, Zhengting, she really has.”  
  
Maybe he should reconsider who between the two of them bewitched blood, Meiqi was so easily manipulating into thinking over his once again changed situation it shouldn’t be considered normal. Yet her words were filled with so much kindness, he couldn’t help aching over it as he gazed at her, giving her the softest smile he could manage. “Thank you. For saying this. And keeping my mother’s secret a secret.”  
  
His sister just remained silent for a moment, not the pressing kind, it was reassuring when from behind them and around the corner that was hiding them from the banquet hall windows shouts could still be heard, the cheerful yells of their siblings that ranged from the playful kind to the more exasperated and only ever was boisterous laughter interrupted by the scolding of their respective mothers. So many voices and so many sounds, in comparison to that the silence of his room above that was only ever filled with the screeches of seagulls whenever he was alone.  
  
When he least expected it, over their just watching the city spreading beneath them, the younger spoke up again, “I have to thank you too. You must have been happy up there, staying all that long despite the pain that must have been your constant companion. But you gave it up for Eunseo and only thanks to you she is back home and safe.” Her nimble fingers clasped around his, a welcome grounding to circumstances he still felt he had no control over. That he was finding support within his family’s arms was a welcome feeling regardless,  
  
“It was beautiful,” he agreed with her, his voice a soft whisper but he meant it. Between the world under the sea he knew like the palm of his hands and the world up above with so many new things to experience and see, he prefered the steady ground, the soil beneath his feet, the soft linen against his chest. But then he looked at his sister, her soft strands of hair and sparkling tail, he listened to his siblings’ many voices and the joy that each of their words held, he felt the way the water caressed around his tail, and he couldn’t bring himself to regret anything. Instead, he tightened her fingers around his hers, trying to convey to her that although it pained him a bit, there was no way he would allow himself to regret it.  
  
There were a lot of things he sensed she might ask sooner or later, maybe not at this current point but sooner or later, most certainly she would ask him about his experiences up there. Possibly not so much about the things he had seen for he was certain he wouldn’t be able to do them justice in words but about the things that had made these few weeks so beautiful in his eyes. His sister had always been more about the effort and impressions rather than the things that were right in front of her; sometimes it was not as important where one was as exactly how they got there.  
  
“Zhengting?” She added, seemingly as an afterthought, with her honey hues turning towards him, that seemed so perfectly resemblant of not only her tail but also her hair. “Can I request something of you?”  
  
A low hum of approval escaped him while he flapped his tail a bit. Throughout the last hours he had tried to slowly get a better feel of his changed muscles again, it felt more natural than with two limbs, still, but it didn’t mean it was as easy as before. He felt like he was recently born again, having to learn how to swim from zero.  
  
Still, it was enough to prompt her to go on, with a little reverent smile on her lips, “That same effort you put into experiencing whatever you did up there, put it also into your future here, alright? You’re lucky, Zhengting, because you inherited the right to wear the crown. Some of us can only dream of just trying it on, and whether you see it or not, our father trusts you a lot. It’s not easy to nearly lose the fourth heir in a row, especially not when he had been so expectant of declaring your taking the throne. At least give it a try, will you?”  
  
“I know,” he replied softly, a bit of amusement spreading across his face as he looked at the twinkling jewels illuminating their hometown beneath, a bit bulkier than the skies at night but mesmerizing nonetheless. “I already formed that resolve of my own. I want to try harder and become the king you all want. It’s the least I can do now.”  
  
“You don’t need to try,” she interrupted, gentle smile on her lips as she parted their hands and then slowly drifted down the water, lowering herself off the balcony and already turning in the direction of the streets beneath. “We all already know you will be one great king. You have that in you.” No longer did she wait for a reply, instead his sister only waved at him cheerily and then disappeared into the cityscape, probably to visit Eunseo as to be judged by the direction she took off to. The sparkle of her golden tail was easily visible in the dark of the night, a sight not unlike the falling stars he had seen that night on the pebble beach.  
  
All these memories he wanted to keep well and safe within his heart, although it might prove to be a challenge to juggle exchanging what he had known with what he had come to know with what he had to learn to know again, he wanted to try. It was incredible, seeing someone in a similar position as he had been in, having to adjust his values, and then hearing compassionate and encouraging words - it suddenly seemed to be all worth it. 

  


｡･:*:･ﾟ’★,｡･:*:･ﾟ’☆

  


If before he had thought he got along well with Yixing, now he felt drawn to reevaluate his opinion of his teacher. It had taken more than just a handful of days to get used to being home, an odd sensation, for he did know his way around and everything still seemed to be the same; cities were stagnant, they didn’t evolve much but the people living within them did, a stark contrast, and suddenly it all seemed so small to him after having experienced so many different things.  
  
His father had come up with some excuse, reasoning Zhengting to have been on some sort of study exchange to another city and it was only that way the prince found out his disappearance had never actually made it to the public. Albeit that would hardly explain his change of colors in front of their folk so he was expectant of what the King would come up with. It was way more thought filling than the lecture on economies his tutor was currently propounding, and pounding those many words also caused to his head.  
  
“Lay,” he interrupted, resting his face against the flats of his hands, tail flipping softly against the ground where it made hardly any sound. A dull thump that was nothing like the soft patter of bare feet against marble tiles. “Can we take a break? I don’t understand half of what you’re saying?”  
  
Inside his mind, he already prepared himself for the speech of how one needed to overcome these struggles, that the harder one worked the luckier they got. On the other hand, he wasn’t sure he could get any more fortunate with the circumstances of his return: having been short of Seungyoun’s receiving his title, he had been allowed to be named the crowned prince again; there was no grand punishment, apparently his father had deemed the suffering over losing his abilities to shift as enough of such; his studies picked up in thrice their intensity and yet he was certain his head might burst, provided he heard just one more word about taxes and trades.  
  
His saving grace came in form of his mother, gently rapping her knuckles against the open arch of the doorway to draw for attention, enough to have the honey tailed merman nod his head before disappearing into another corner of the library, surely to look for more scriptures of exactly how currency exchanges would affect the static of their own money. Just thinking of it had him drifting onto the stone plate into a pitiful heap of bones, flesh and scales.  
  
“Don’t despair, my baby,” Zhong softly called out, her slender fingers driving through his now messy black hair. The sight of those darkened strands, interlaced by purples and pinks quite like his tail, was still putting him off at times, still unique and being told to be handsome regardless, he missed the resemblance he had earlier had with his mother. “Yixing is just trying to make you a great king. Only a kind heart won’t take you there.”  
  
“Thought I’d have advisors for that,” he grumbled into his arms, and oh, just how much he yearned for one. How come Ziyi had had at least one of those while he was still pitifully learning about monetary changes? Regret washed over him for having thought of the human the moment his heart clenched painfully within his chest, feeling more intense with its slow rhythm than it surely would have been had it been faster. Then again, the earthbound prince hadn’t had three of his brothers bailing on him. “Talking that, do I even have any nominations for that so far?”  
  
“Jiaer?” His mother tried and then had the audacity to laugh at his pained groan at the mention of that hyper merman. Talented for sure, that certain male was just known for too much energy and too many words to be considered anything but a handful, even as advisor. Would have been better cut out as ambassador of sorts. “But this is not why I’m here, my pearl.”  
  
It seemed ironic, how she was still calling him that way, for before he might have resembled a pearl with his shiny lilac hues but now that he was iridescent black, he was certain no such orb could ever be found. Habits denied forces of nature, though, and as long as that nickname sounded so soothing he didn’t want to miss it at all.  
  
Not wanting to seem too moody around his own blood, though, he released a sigh prior to turning his head, gazing up at her otherworldly features with enough of a prompting in his eyes to get her started, “You still look like your aunt. With that longing expression of yours. Is it still about the world you’ve seen? Or is it about a man you met?” Her words, so fluently evading any hints of where he had been, were gentle, not lacking any of her prying anyways.  
  
For a moment his eyes darted around, looking for whether Yixing was still around to possibly listen in on what might be the biggest secret his branch of the family had to hold. “I saved him before. I went up one night and he might have drowned had I not-” His voice broke off, memories feeling like poisonous algae wrapping around his chest, his water infused lungs, his heart, leaving a burning sensation within his flesh as they were slowly pulled tight. “And then he pulled me out of the water. Looked out for me and taught me a lot about them- I didn’t get to say goodbye, mom…”  
  
Her fingers had changed movements, pale digits now scratching along his neck, her claws razor sharp and yet a mere trace against his skin. Maybe Zhengting was not able to read the look within her eyes, all these emotions he hadn’t ever seen her express before, nevertheless, he didn’t give her an opportunity to reply as he rather went on, “I also made a friend. Jieqiong. She said as a child she had lived next to that aunt, with hair as white as the seafoam and skin nearly lucid above her veins. That aunt always told her about the wonders of the sea and…” He stopped, seeing the entangled emotions of sadness and joy within his mother’s eyes, settling with a mere smile on his lips. “She’s fine, mom. She’s still looking young and I think she will be comfortable staying where she is. If I ever happen to see her again… If ever, I’ll ask Jieqiong to tell her you’re fine.”  
  
Seeing her eyes still so full of withheld sensations, feeling how her fingers had stopped caressing his skin, it was him this time around to reach up and gentle slide his knuckles along her cheek, rubbing the pads of his fingers into her skin smoothly. “You don’t need to worry any more, mom.”  
  
For maybe the first time of his life, he felt his mother lean into his touch, looking for the comfort of another person as her eyes fell close, a smile drawn upon Zhong’s features to make her look more tender than ever. “You’ve grown up well, my son. Just when did you become so mature, hm?”  
Zhengting’s own lips pulled into a grin, sharp teeth interlocking as he looked at her with fond eyes, only to feel startled when a soft cough resounded behind them. Quickly his head turned around to find Yixing’s sheepish eyes glancing at them. “I don’t want to interrupt but we better continue your lessons, my prince.”  
  
The addressed quickly nodded, feeling his mother already shift in his hold and then watched her heading for the door with a small wave of her fingers still, expressing her looking forward to their reunion at dinner, and then she was gone. And he had to return to the torture of his studies with Yixing’s unyielding will. 

  


｡･:*:･ﾟ’★,｡･:*:･ﾟ’☆

  


Dolphins were lovely companions, not quite as awesome as sharks and the fish familiars definitely had less questionable hobbies, but they were lovely nonetheless. After his first encounter with the human and his return to the sea, he had swam into the same family of mammals again some while ago, the babies having grown fond of him, so now he sometimes spent his free time doing little races with them. Such as he was currently doing, enjoying this evening off, the sneaking away from dinner and leaving the cityscape to find freedom in the sea.  
  
The harder he worked the luckier he indeed got, for his father had appreciated his many efforts by awarding him with rights such as leaving their hometown without trouble. He appreciated it, at least it allowed him to drift mere feet beneath the surface now, watching the vague shine of the moon through the fluid disturbance, feeling the nudge of a little dolphin’s snoot against the palm of his hand, asking for some caresses. “Curious little thing,” he laughed, rolling around to play a little game of tag with the small thing when a bang resounded throughout the waters.  
  
Poor little thing, he thought as he watched after the dolphin rushing back to its resting mother, followed by another and two of the youngsters, the whole school complete and diving further under as a fuzzy mess of exploding colors painted the waves. It took him less than a second to recognize just what it was - fireworks, as he had found them being called - something he could only see now that he was closer to the coast. And albeit he had made sure that he would never be around during those times the fishermen headed out, it didn’t mean some sort of belonging was washing over him with the rush of the waves, seeing the faintest outlines of the palace up on the cliff, the dull lights of the houses surrounding it and tracing down to the port. It was a different angle, but it felt comfortable nonetheless.  
  
In that aspect, he assumed, the change of colors was to his advantage for he could raise his head above the surface without having to fear his whitish hair to be spotted immediately, only to observe the blooming flowers. It was beautiful, it was always so incredibly mesmerizing, albeit he had never known quite how much he loved it until he hadn’t seen it for a while. So he wanted to appreciate the sight for some time longer, keep it while it lasts, turned on his back to watch the seemingly far away obstacle that was so much like a play acted out against the skies.  
  
For a brief moment he wondered what they had to celebrate, despite how often the humans of that town seemed to come together as compared to the merfolk, he was not certain they would dish out these methods of celebration for just any reason. Whatever it was, it must mean a lot to them, and curiosity he had to force down his throat bubbled up within him as he wondered just how these celebrations would turn out. Was it like the market he had attended? were there a lot of foreign traders? did they have special shows as were underwater?  
  
It was hurting his heart more than he would have thought, being reminded of the many things he might be missing out on, so he considered going home might just about be the better option. Already he was submerging his head, meaning to head downwards with an arch, when he spotted the shadow of a boat not too far away. He had heard humans say that curiosity killed the cat, but at this point he wasn’t certain it wouldn’t kill him as he spun around and drifted a bit closer to the little boat. Maybe he was not a hunter like those distant relatives of his but he still knew how to sneak up on others without a single ripple of the waves.  
  
Simultaneously to breaching the surface he brushed back his hair to have better sight of whoever might be on board, familiar sleek hair and elegantly raised shoulders. The reasonable part of his brain told him to think rationally, to check first before doing what he was currently doing, namely rapping his knuckles against the wooden planks. Admittedly, it must be startling, evident in how Jieqiong flinched but then, as she turned around and saw him, he could see the fading expressions on her face, surprise morphing into joy and then she was already tilting over the rim too far.  
  
“Theo!” She exclaimed loudly, too loudly, while he put his wet hand against her shoulder to steady her lest she’d topple over together with her cockleshell. “Oh my god, to think I’d see you again, you-” The girl broke off, likely for she was finally taking in his changed appearance while he could only admire how little of her looks had changed, merely the strands of her hair having been further feathered out. What a lucky coincidence it had been her indeed, a trace of the life he had led for one short month. “Oh- Oh! I’m sorry, do you think you can come up? Is it even comfortable to stay afloat like this?”  
  
He smiled softly in lieu of a reply, then pushed himself up and flapped himself into the boat, being careful both of it not toppling over and the low of his tail remaining within the water. At least like this he had his hands free to start moving them around, asking her in silence, “What are you doing out here?”  
  
It was funny, he had not practiced sign language for surely weeks, yet it came so easily to him, signaling these words he had thought he had forgotten, speaking with more fluency than he had ever before thanks to the rush of adrenaline having him remember these many movements all at once. But now it was his only means of talking, his vocal chords too changed to even attempt talking her language, no matter that he could still so easily understand her.  
  
“They’re celebrating Ziyi’s birthday,” she replied pensively, her eyes still lingering on his tail, looking more colorful now that the spectacle of the dark sky was reflected on his still wet scales, looking almost better than the original high up. “What happened to your tail? It changed-”  
  
Vaguely he waved his hand, literally brushing her concerns aside before signaling, “It’s complicated.” Because just how was he supposed to explain exactly all the things that had happened? even before, he had not been able to exactly describe the circumstances of his mother’s heritage so how could he now?  
  
A small, soothing smile built on Jieqiong’s lips, the same gentleness he was already used to. “It looks beautiful,” she promised, more reassurance within her voice than many others would ever possess and then, without the hesitance of before, her fingers traced the surrounding of some of his scales. He’d have never thought how calming such movement could be, her fascination towards what was normal to him not yet having worn off, and it continued despite how his head fell back so he could watch the sky flowers again.  
  
“He misses you, you know?” She said after a while, timid prodding of the silence that had filled the spaces them that were not yet in contact, and three single words were quite enough to bring the whole delight of this night crumbling into itself. “The day you disappeared, Xukun and the Prince had a fight. I’m not sure about the details but… he’s not as bright as he has been before.”  
  
If he were to be honest, he wanted to hear more, wanted to listen to how Ziyi was doing but he couldn’t stomach it, it hurt him, to hear about what he couldn’t have back. So he didn’t reply, he merely grabbed her hand, flattening her digits and palm, and then he pushed the necklace he had worn into her hands. A simple smile, no explanation despite - or exactly because of - his confidence in her understanding, and then he sank back into the water without further avowal. 

  


｡･:*:･ﾟ’★,｡･:*:･ﾟ’☆

  


Yixing had apparently started a higher level program - which was absurd, because the starting level had already well overworked Zhengting but now that he had finally gotten the hang of their economies and started on reciting their laws by memory alone, that darned - and he said that in all his love - teacher of his always interrupted with economies. It had lead to one or another curious of incident of his suddenly declaring a death penalty upon wrongly exchanged currency, an outcome that would most definitely not be appreciated by his folk. That over the last minutes a huge commotion had also started up outside somewhere was definitely not aiding his case.  
  
“...and for that reason theft should be punished with-” He murmured into his hands, he really tried to focus on exactly what he was supposed to say but when those yells outside only seemed to become louder, he couldn’t help himself releasing a frustrated groan while tugging at his black strands of hair. At least it seemed this time around his tutor was understanding of the situation, throwing worried glances outside rather than showing interest in a round of scolding.  
  
For a while, they spoke no words between the two of them, rather seeing as to whether or not the commotion might die down but even minutes later it seemed to last as a big uproar, unrelenting energy in whoever was of such joyous spirit. Logically thinking, there was no reason for their town to be so out of it; had no war to be won, no political discussions that justified his intense studying in first place, no highly evaluated visitor scheduled to come so why? The pondering such questions must have been evident within his eyes as he gazed at Yixing opposite him, wondering whether his elder might know what this all was about. Albeit it really didn’t seem like it, assuming by the reflected confusion and some more passing moments, then his teacher waved him off.  
  
“It doesn’t seem like it will calm down soon and although I hate to cut lessons short…” The instructor sighed heavily, and to a fault Zhengting could understand: as much as these lessons were tiring, exhausting and straining, there was an inherent delight in accomplishing their schedule for a day, naturally sometimes hindered by his own fatigue making concentrating unbearable. Those were entirely different reasons to being interrupted by outside factors which were incredibly harder to stomach.  
  
“Tomorrow at the usual time?” The prince asked, rather than sticking around already getting up carefully from his seat and drifting himself towards the windows with gentle flaps of his tail. All it took for him to take off was a confirmation from his tutor and then he was gone, sinking down within the water like a pile of lead, trying to get closer to the heart of the commotion.  
  
People had been wary of him at first, and he couldn’t even hold it against them, for the closer circle around the King and also most of the guards had been aware of the crowned prince to have gone missing, and suddenly he was back? looking like a checkered cow with the gradient of his tail and the shadow of a humane tattoo? a change of hair color that was as likely under the sea as it would to be raining within the wet? Even now, some didn’t seem to have entirely gotten rid of all their provisos, but at least they were respectful enough to part ways for him as he got closer to what he recognized to be several of his family members.  
  
Panic would have washed over him were it not for the happiness and cheers surrounding them, instead it was curiosity that filled him for without reason his family would never go as crazy as this. Wenjun was closest to him, so he didn’t hesitate to pull the younger closer to his side, expectant eyes directed at his brother who didn’t exactly hesitate to tell, “Oh, you’re here! I already thought you wouldn’t make it before dinner.” The brunet might as well be unnerving with his little smile and curved eyes to chat about in such situation, but he wasn’t, too much underlying charisma and ease oozing off the prince to be irritating. “Rumor has it Sungjoo is back but I didn’t catch sight of him so far.”  
  
Zhengting’s eyes widened lightly at such suggestion, one that might seem like an awful prank but it wasn’t like his close sibling to join a joke like this. On the other hand, if it turned out to be actually true, he assumed their father might be the luckiest man of the year, to be able to welcome two lost sons back into his arms. As much as the King actually welcomed one back with a warm embrace. “Does his mother know?” He instead asked, eyes still lingering on the pile of siblings in front of them, Wenjun showing about as much eagerness as did the crown prince to get involved in the brawl.  
  
“I believe Mia went to fetch her,” the brown haired replied, corners of the lips curling up slightly in that affectionate manner that seemed to be reserved only for children or family, withholding more feelings around strangers that seemed so alien.  
  
It was a bit of a curious sight, all these youngsters piled together when he wasn’t even certain half of them had been old enough to remember who the second oldest of the family was in first place. Merfolk aging still was a bit different to humans, slowed down, the age gaps so grand Zhengting himself had not yet been an adult when the second heir of that time had disappeared. But maybe that was also the reason for their interest, this mysterious and unknown prince who had gone missing and caused their father grief, an ever prominent figure in all their lives.  
  
Far above them, he could see the approaching figure and a royally blue tail racing towards them, the pressure within the air currents enough to signal the youngests that they better disperse before they get caught in conflict. Only thanks to their diverting the crowned prince finally caught sight of the burgundy scales of the second oldest, seconds before Yixuan was already crushing into the newcomer and both of them collided with the ground, enough force to the push that it sent the sand on the ground off in a wave. Whether this was a sweet reunion or a tackle of pent up frustration was not exactly certain until their figures were seen rolling around. Except - “So are they fighting or laughing now?” Wenjun summed up Zhengting’s thoughts perfectly.  
  
“Both?” He tried, looking at their flurry of movements that seemed to be both and something in between, words of missing each other interspersed with accusations, mostly from Yixuan’s side, and then a funny mixture of punches and tackles and hugs. Despite the many years that had passed, it seemed to be more than just evident how they had spent their youth playing, and if the black haired focused just enough, he was even certain he could remember Wenhan amidst their juvenile pile back then, now gone off to another kingdom. In that regard, their oldest must be happy to have back one of his closest brothers, regardless of a return never actually being able to make up for the disappearance in first place.  
  
“Wenjun,” he said softly, waiting just long enough to see the pale blue tailed look back at him to go on, “I’ll head out for a bit. I’ll be back for dinner.” He smiled softly at the younger, patted his shoulder, and then he disappeared. Knowing this would be a bright day for their home made it easier to go without guilt, they would all be too caught up in welcoming the lost royal family’s member, they would not notice. It was a perfect opportunity to consider his own situation, how much it might all change when it came down to it: Sungjoo was, in terms of age, the rightful owner of the crown that would soon be placed within Zhengting’s hands, and albeit the ceremony of handing over the throne would be delayed with studies having to start anew - and he could basically imagine Yixing greying over that - he had no right to deny his older brother what belonged to him.  
  
Even hours of pondering later, he was not certain whether he’d rather go on with his own ambitions and drown his misery of having lost another life and love in work, or whether he should give up all these burdens and put them back onto the one who had passed them onto him in first place. Solely that it was not that easy, certainly Sungjoo hadn’t expected to be the one to carry the crown at one point when Yixuan had already been around, stuck in military training back then but the crowned nonetheless.  
  
“Zhengting,” a voice called out, a shadow looming above him from where he had settled beneath a ledge to enjoy the sunlight beaming through the water masses without actually getting blinded by its intensity. A mere second passed and Justin was next to him, looking bright as ever but it was to be expected of such a young heart, fitting especially well into the category of siblings who knew Sungjoo from rumors rather than memories. “Did you already hear that-”  
  
“Sungjoo is back,” he finished for the younger, reaching up to ruffle golden strands of hair up with his hand, much to the young’s dismay. “I know, I’ll catch up to him later. Are you excited?”  
  
That seemed to be enough of a question to ask, hitting the mark for already the emerald merboy was diving into the whole story of how he had been the first to spot that man out in he riffs, having been recognized of his own before he had made sense of that unfamiliar frame; skipping onto their way back to town, the talks they had; about how Yixuan’s and Sungjoo’s brotherly brawl had gone on for another half an hour and some until the King interspersed. Now that at least the second oldest of the batch of siblings was caught up within their ruler’s study, things had calmed down so far, although the respective mother had ordered for a banquet worthy of her son’s return. A dinner they had to return to not much later, and with every flip of his tail carrying him closer to the palace, Zhengting felt the burdens within him twist and curl. 

  


｡･:*:･ﾟ’★,｡･:*:･ﾟ’☆

  


The change of seasons usually affected the temperatures within the water little, more so when their body heat was self-regulating, but the lack of such signals didn’t mean it wasn’t obvious in other ways. The slightest change of pressure, the way it tasted on their tongues and within their oxygen filtering lungs, the slow decrease of sunshine hitting the bottom of their riff - it was also signaling him just how long it had been since he had been to the surface. When he had lived up there, it had been with the weather warming up, flowers blooming, not too cold to need a cloak but not warm enough to go for a swim, at least for actual humans. For a while he wondered just how much time must have passed in the ways of humans calculating them, how many of these months, as they called it, had passed, and how much the town had changed.  
  
Whereas his home still felt stagnant, after Sungjoo’s arrival all had returned to routine, his brother been given time to settle in, entertaining the youngsters with stories of all the things he had seen, tongue now heavy with a mixture of accents picked up on the way. Struggles of the change in seas, the many new animals seen, the visits to other kingdoms not as part of the royal family but as a mere stranger, a lunatic traveler doing the crazy things and taking on irresponsible journeys no one else would. In that way, Zhengting assumed, it truly spoke for the oddities carried on within their family, and just how off some of their tendencies might appear.  
  
A never changing routine he followed even now, having just finished his lessons meaning his drifting through hallways and down the slope of towers until he was within the dining hall along with the rest of his family. The only difference was that, since Yixuan was mostly having his dinner within the barracks, now that Sungjoo had returned, he was no longer the prince sat closest to the King. He was not sure about how to feel about this, as he was not about a lot of things, too much seeming too vague, and the mere fact that he was still called the crowned prince was as unsettling as it was reassuring. Because while he had not yet heard a threat towards this title, neither had he heard a promise of it remaining his.  
  
Until this moment, this second of his father speaking up in the middle of that boisterous dinner and declaring, “Sungjoo came to me a while ago,” the King started, directed at Zhengting alone but it was obvious by the slowly dying out conversations how this was peaking interest from all of the family. “And since, we have been in discussion about something very important. Zhengting, ever since you… returned, Zhong has told me that this is not the life for you. I know you were never entirely satisfied with your position and you expressed this with your… unconventional interest” - considering the careful manner it all was phrased, the black haired at least assumed he should give his father the benefit of admiration towards forming his speech so nicely - “I still was delighted to see you accept your studies so willingly. But I’m afraid that your mother knows you better than I do.”  
  
A single snort came from further down the table, most likely Chengcheng as to be guessed by the direction their father glared at but Zhengting couldn’t exactly help the amused huff that left his own lips. At least the King was aware of that much. “You should be glad your brother returned before your coronation, it still gives us time to adjust to the new situation. Until then…” His father left the sentence without end, instead reaching forth and holding out a necklace towards the prince. It looked simple, nothing more than a white shell and some similarly colorless pearls wound up on a glistening string but the very way they were so lacking in hues had the merman widen his eyes in confusion. “I think you will know what it is to be used for.”  
  
Maybe he imagined but he wasn’t exactly certain his hands were not shaking as he took the necklace from his father’s hands, feeling over the shell and the pearls surrounding it, the somewhat rough outer shell that was rivaled by the slick insides, iridescent in the same way his own tail had been, still partly was. “My king, that’s…” He started, and he wanted to say more, but when his throat closed up it became impossible to do as much, could only wordlessly look at his father with unspoken words in his eyes.  
  
“Just promise your mother you will visit every once in a while,” the ruler spoke up, all that could be said before Zhengting, with all the speed he was able to use, catapulted himself against the bigger frame of his father to engulf him in a hug. The kind of embrace he was not certain when had been the last time to take place, but with thick arms surrounding him he couldn’t exactly find it in himself to be against it, or against showing more of these affections now that he was free. All of a sudden, it was way more tangible as to why Wenhan’s relationship had eased up with their father after marriage and moving as well.  
  
Behind him, he could hear the confusion within his siblings’ voices, after all, not many of them were aware of just where he had been during that one human month of his vanishing away. Only those who were aware seemed to be looking at him affectionately, and it had him smiling as he parted from his father to also engulf his mother into a tight hug that was filled with whispers of his gratefulness. 

  


｡･:*:･ﾟ’★,｡･:*:･ﾟ’☆

  


The air was cold as he heaved himself onto one of the docks, even icier now that it was in the middle of the night with most of the boats just having left, and it proved once more to be to his advantage that his tail was now mostly dark, reflecting the moonlight in a more muted manner. But even the chilly surroundings were nothing against the pain that came with tearing his tail apart to instead form two twitching human legs, trembling from the exertion of the shift still. As painful as that part was, his mother - in his father’s stead - had often times reassured him that walking would come to him easier now, because this time it was not part of a curse spoken against them for leaving their home grounds, it was an ability granted to him as a gift.  
  
He had never exactly wondered how his father had managed to walk around land when he had never been part of sea witch blood, it had all just come down to this necklace, an artifact, older than many of the kingdoms their kind had built. From one of the first witches, who had seen a human fall in love with a mermaid, crossing borders of their lives to come together at night. But as he had fallen sick with time, all he had wished for had been for her to see all the places he had described to her, and so he had called out to the sea to be benevolent towards his wish. Giving up his heart in exchange for one of the witch’s scales, it had been embedded within the shell with humane blood, sealing a gift that would last for as long as his soul would love hers. It was his last gift to her, and with as much of her abilities as she could, she had roamed lands to find all the places of his tales. Only in old age had she returned to the sea and given the necklace back to the white witch, telling her to keep it for those who must find love and if it crossed the borders of their realms.  
  
Back then, his father had received it to find that trapped mermaid, and maybe it had been the blessing said for the jewelry but he had indeed found love in Zhong’s arms, and now Zhengting could only put his faith into receiving the same. First he had to get off the wooden planks, though, lest he’d die of hypothermia, and as much as it strained his aching body, he forced himself upwards to take some wobbly first steps. It took him nearly the whole of length of the dock to find a steady footing, to be able to walk more securely albeit he was still shivering, now from the cold.  
  
There was but a single light nearby that indicated someone awake, a lantern that was light along the stone steps leading up to the lowest streets of town but it seemed to have been the right choice when he was greeted by a low chuckle. “Now, that is a mark I would always recognize,” a vaguely familiar voice called out, one he could only put to an identity when he saw Dinghao’s face and the sketchbook within those nimble hands. Then the mer’s gaze went down to his hips where the feather had prevailed, now making him smile softly before he turned it back to the artist with a question in his eyes.  
  
“Let’s get you dressed and then to the prince, shall we?” The human suggested but Zhengting could only nod in agreement, following the light steps of the earthbound up the stairway and then around the streets until they had arrived at a small house. Quickly he was ushered inside, a fire having warmed up the place and a blanket was soon wrapped around his shoulders.  
  
To express his gratitude, he wanted to speak up, only to find his vocal chords not quite as responsive towards his intent as he would have liked. But Dinghao merely shushed him with a finger to his own lips, as if it were a funny secret between them, and then disappeared for some short while out onto the streets. For what reason, the merman couldn’t understand, until some more time had passed and knuckles rapped against the sturdy door of that small abode, and once it was opened by the host, the former prince found his breath stolen from him without intent.  
  
Ziyi had his hair grown out a bit, that was the first thing for him to realize, and those pale cheeks had gained some ruddiness thanks to the cold outside, eyes still bleary from sleep but still so impossibly dark. Lips that were looking cry and slightly cracked, still as plush as always, sharp jawline, and despite how he was certain that the inky haired should be dressed properly, beneath the open coat and the messily buttoned shirt, he found his own necklace low against that sculpted chest he had once been allowed to feel against his own. “Theo- You-”  
  
Zhengting didn’t exactly answer, not verbally so, only pushed himself onto his still slightly unsteady legs, blanket wrapped tight around his nude frame, so he could look at the prince up close. A little smile, that was all it took for the human to release a wet laughter and then arms were wrapped around the mer, holding the blankets in place and their figures close together. This was home, this was the kind of place he wanted to return to, not a house or fixed spot, but a warm embrace to welcome him back. 

  


｡･:*:･ﾟ’★,｡･:*:･ﾟ’☆

  


It was late at night when Zhengting gently nudged his feet against Ziyi’s legs from where they were buried underneath a pile of blankets against his boyfriends thighs, and it was odd to use such humane term when he had been around for merely one turn of the sun. In general, he was not quite certain such term existed under the sea: there was only the stage of courting and then the more lawful process of marriage and living together. There was no such trial run as it might be when calling someone merely a boyfriend.  
  
Although he wasn’t even certain it was as simple for the human, in fact, not when in the morning Jieqiong had brought him a set of clothes to his former room and informed him with a charming smile that not only his aunt was doing well but also the details of the necklace. Apparently, for the whole passing of several months since she had handed them over, Ziyi had not been seen without it even once. Furthermore, despite what Xukun must have told him about his departure and what had become hot rumors around town, about sighting two merpeople, the prince had requested to delay marriage proposals for some more time, supposedly in hopes of Zhengting returning.  
  
When considering how easily he had been welcomed back, he didn’t even dare question the hope lying within such act too much. But it didn’t change that he had, one way or another, informed a lot of people about his secret identity already, just never directly spoken about it to his maybe lover. He wanted to, he really wanted to, and if they planned on remaining together for real, sooner or later he had to as well or how else would he explain as to why he was jumping into the sea to visit home?  
  
“Ziyi,” he said softly, voice still thin and weak from how he had to get used to it again, these changed ways of vocalization, and considering he still had some sort of errand to run, this seemed to be a time better than any other for this very occasion. For another second he waited, until those incredibly dark eyes were directed at him, with all the fondness of the world lying within them, enough of it to have his own cheeks warm up and a shy smile curling up on his lips, along with that flutter of his heart he never actually found himself able to get used to. “Can we-” He started, but realized he couldn’t form more words, only pointing outside while making sure his eyes conveyed how important that was to him.  
  
Ziyi, apparently, had more problems saying no to him than with anything else, so it didn’t take long for them to be dressed in coats, and as much as he hated them, Zhengting had still put on a pair of pants and even some shoes lined with soft fur. His hand, though, was save within the human’s, fingers long and warm wrapped around his, even when it was him to lead the way around the streets and down to the lower ends of it.  
  
Seasonal changes meant it was already well dark around them when it was not even time to get tired, but it made this an easier task as he headed forth on the slippery wood, towards the end of the docks he had moved out of the water on as well. He could feel the curious eyes against his nape, yet he didn’t find it within him to explain anything, not even attempting to, only moved to sit down and wait, wait for this special sign, unknowingly waiting for Ziyi to sit down next to him too. Immediately it caused a smile to split his face in half as he looked over, towards next to him, and squeezed that warmer hand within his softly.  
  
It was inviting, to just lean in now, have their lips meet, kiss in this awfully cheesy way underneath the moon at night, and he might have done so too. Only that at the slightest tilt of his frame he heard a wet splash from just a few feet away that had the inky haired turn away from him, look at the source of the noise. Surprise was tangible on the prince’s face, it was so evident, adorable, to watch the swift change of emotions to a sight Zhengting could more than easily imagine. The white tail of his mother that must look so ghostly with only the pale moonshine illuminating it, the sharp fins that might as well be deadly if not used to moving around merfolk, not to mention her smile that might be gentle in nature but seemed anything but with their teeth meant to rip apart prey.  
  
“Don’t,” he said softly to the human next to him, putting pressure to the hold between their fingers once more prior to parting them, getting up in favor of holding his hands out to his mother. Combined efforts of his steering and her pushing herself out of the water made it easy to get her onto the dock, and another moment later her pallid scales had turned into milky skin that he covered with his cloak. Much rather he had himself shivering than his mother sitting on the woods, looking all the more mealy now that she was dressed in dark.  
  
The human in front of them looked startled more than anything, despite supposedly lucid dreams of that day of nearly drowning and the rumors that likely still surrounded the merman, there was a distinct difference between hearing about it and seeing it in person. A bit uncertain, the mer bit down on his tongue before he pointed at Zhong and explained, “My… my mom?” Considering how Ziyi still looked a bit out of it, he then gestured his hands towards the inky haired, addressing his mother, “Ziyi.” He inhaled to say more, force the words past his strained vocal chords, stopped only by the knowing look within her orbs.  
  
Much to his surprise, his mother already got up to stand, needing his support but definitely more efficient within her movements than he had been. Surely because she had been for much longer on land than him, no matter how long it had been ago, and for her blood had never been diluted, this shape more natural to her. From the corner of his eyes, he could see the human doing the same as fast as possible, the display of manners making him chuckle under his breath.  
  
“I’m happy to finally meet the one who keeps my son trapped on land,” Zhong said softly, fluency within her words that had both of the young men startled in surprise, a glint of amusement within her gaze at such sight. “And I should report to my husband soon about his well beings. That is, as long as you are concerned with looking out for him. Otherwise I won’t feel comfortable leaving him behind in your hands.”  
  
Zhengting’s eyes widened lightly at these words, the kind that sounded quite as if he were married of already. Albeit it wouldn’t be too odd, merfolk were faster with these procedures, not to mention how his will to move to land might have further sped up such declaration of hers.  
  
For another moment or so, Ziyi still seemed to be caught up in a stupor, only shaken out of it by the moment the mer felt his hand being taken by his mother. Immediately a much warmer set of digits was wrapped around his other hand, stopping any movement of the two family members. “I am intent on looking out for him, ma’am. The happiest moment of my life was when he returned to me. His heritage won’t lessen any of my dedication to him.”  
  
Now it seemed to be the merman’s turn to widen his eyes in surprise, heat creeping up his cheeks, his shock not lasting for long when already he felt his mother release her grip on him. “I’m happy to hear this, Ziyi,” she said softly, and in a bit of a trance Zhengting watched as she reached out to gently pat her hand against the human’s cheek. He had to give it up to the earthbound that he didn’t even flinch at that. “When my son has settled properly, I hope you will welcome me paying a visit. I fear my husband won’t be able to pay you the same respect because he gave up that chance for our son. Neither will the rest of our family. But I still wish for you to treat him well.”  
  
“Of course, ma’am,” the human said softly, and despite the cold surrounding them, it looked as if he were slowly warming up a bit to the ghostly woman. Not that that hindered him to look aside in shame when seeing her drop the coat into her son’s hand so it wouldn’t get wet once she dove back into the water.  
  
“Next time I hope you’re going to call me ‘mother-in-law’,” Zhong still jested, driving her fingers through Zhengting’s messily colored hair, all words for her offspring within her eyes before she went to the ledge to lower herself into the water again. For another moment, the mer looked after his family, not with an aching within his heart this time around, much rather it was filled with endearment towards his mother to accept this path of life of his.  
  
Then he turned to Ziyi again, looking at him with wide eyes and parted lips, wanting to say something. He never got the chance, not when the breath was stolen from him the second he felt another pair of lips against his. And it had been this kind of romantic moment he had been thinking about earlier, to stand out in the open, so close to the sea, with the moon shining down upon them, with all that had priorly been missing being the snow that started to drift down from the skies.  
  
When quite as dry lips as his own parted from him again but proximity had their breaths intermingling, he opened his eyes again, only to find those beautiful onyx eyes right to stare into. It had a smile pulling up the corners of his lips, an expression he found mirrored on the human’s face who whispered, “I feel like I just got offered your hand for marriage.”  
  
His mother’s words had indeed sounded that way, and maybe he should feel flustered by that, his mother having met his humane love for merely a few moments but already spouting such meaningful things. Yet he only found it in him to release a breathy laugh cutting through the edge of the night, not stopping even when a warm palm was pressed against his cheek and Ziyi muttered, “You look beautiful like this,” before their lips locked for another kiss.

  


｡･:*:･ﾟ’★,｡･:*:･ﾟ’☆

  


**Epilogue**

  


Jieqiong had told him some while ago that spring was the season of blooming love, and albeit his feelings were no longer a budding rose, he couldn’t deny the truth within these words. Now that the weather was warmer, approaching summer, he found delight in all the more moments that Ziyi took him outside the castle, pursuing all these little humane things he had partly gotten to know before.  
  
This day would be just another of the prince taking him out for a day at the market, supposedly there had been a change in traders and Zhengting couldn’t hide his excitement upon seeing some more new things. His steps were lighter, light like the feather drawn upon his hip, as he rushed through the palace towards where they had promised to meet, with the prince having needed to take care of some royal business first thing in the morning, leaving the mer to have breakfast of his own. He even had woken up to one empty bed, no sweet good morning kisses and cuddles, it had left him feeling drained of affection he wanted to replenish first second of meeting.  
  
One habit he had not gotten rid of was his avoidance of shoes, and the sound of his bare soles smacking against marble tiles as he rushed through the grand hallway was already announcing his approach of the tall prince near the entrance. The one who greeted him with open arms when they collided, running force sending them stumbling for a few feet until Ziyi had him well secured within his arms.  
  
“Good morning, beautiful,” the inky haired greeted him softly, with a short but undoubtedly tender kiss, an interlude to their crossing fingers and walking through the town to reach the shipyards as had become their ritual once a week. It would be disgusting to keep their hands entwined within the humid air, would not the need for proximity outrule the stickiness of sweat between their skin.  
  
“What were you up so early for?” Zhengting whined softly, wrapping his free arm also around the prince’s so close to his side, snuggling up since he had not been able to in the morning. Throughout the last months he had been around, he had gotten considerably better at talking, his throat getting hoarse faster than of those who were born with these chords but the length of his sentences and amount of times talking was slowly increasing with the rising use.  
  
Ziyi didn’t reply exactly, only pressed a kiss to multicolored hair that really shouldn’t be quite as distracting - except it was. A simple gesture yet it seemed to carry the meaning of way more, it had the mer’s slow heart miss a beat, one that was quickly made up for when the large building came into view. Immediately excitement washed over him, his grip on the human’s arm slackening so he could use the grip of their hands to pull the younger along instead, speed increased in favor of reaching their goal fast.  
  
Despite the changed stalls, when it came to afternoons at the market, it was no longer only the traders Zhengting looked forward to. Much rather he dragged the prince to the little bistro at the low end of it, the one he had been taken to during their first time there, and that now, intriguingly, was no longer visited only by humans.  
  
It had been a funny turn out, but one that might have been unavoidable. The rumors surrounding him had never settled down, not when so many fishermen still swore on having seen a mermaid within his arms that one day, and considering his having gone out to not only the docks but also the beach at times to meet up with his family, more and more sightings of these creatures had taken place. At that point, it should have come as no surprise that increasingly many voices had questioned the prince during these monthly nights of drinking together, some queries also directed at the actual merman. All of it had come down to one surprising statement: that they should try to get along.  
  
Admittedly, the greatest wall to climb with that case had been his own father, still reluctant to let his folk interact with humans but Zhengting talking to Zhong had led to some well going trials. Arranging a date, and as he was at the market with Ziyi, and Xukun for better effort as well, Yixuan had been the first to swim up to the shipyard to emerge at its lower end, where the water was still allowed to enter the building.  
  
Naturally, some others like Justin or Cheng Xiao might have been more interested in that task, but it had been a well-wrought decision from his two oldest brothers to send someone a bit more skilled in combat, in case things went awry. Not like they actually did, as much as the people were awed at first, with Ziyi’s reassurance and Zhengting’s protectiveness towards his brother, surprise had soon worn off into fascination. That had taken place several weeks before, and by now it was a way more relaxed situation. Visitors from the sea were still mostly those known for a brave heart - or just those who were straight out daring bordering dumb, like some of his own brothers, unfortunately.  
  
Conversations had proven to be difficult at first, often times translations of sorts were still needed, but Jieqiong herself had taken it upon herself to teach the mer and humans the sign language that had aided their shared conversations as well. Sungjoo, too, had made an effort to teach more of that in schools under the sea, and although this sort of project was only going on for a little while so far, it had seemed to prove as quite efficient so far.  
  
Ziyi, most of all, must have been aware how much this meant to Zhengting, a combination of his two homes, and the whole town had put some effort into this newly discovered singularity of theirs, fascinated with the mer but knowing better than to threaten a whole species able to deny them of their food by talking to the seaborne animals. For that reason some new laws had been enforced, among them the hunting of mer being marked as a declaration as war, not to mention it being supposed to stay as a well regulated secret of their own. As Yanjun had lamely named it, “We need no spectators for our sight-sea-ing.” That the future military leader had then obnoxiously laughed might better be eradicated from memory.  
  
Despite Zhengting joy in possibly seeing some of his family again and wanting to race there as quickly as possibly, not once did he let go of Ziyi’s hand within his own, merely skillfully operated his way through the visitors of the market to get to his aimed spot. The bistro, too, must have realized the interest of the mer in humane food, and with some logistics, they had managed to set up some sort of benches within the water still to allow their tailed visitors to rest there.  
  
To his greatest surprise, that day he did not only find his mother there, sitting on the wall that parted one of the docks from the next, her human figure covered by a tunic someone must have granted her, but also his father, their fingers entwined quite similarly to how his were tangled with the human prince’s. It had the former crown prince stop in his steps so abruptly that his earthbound lover nearly crashed into him, but while Zhengting just wanted to stay stuck where he was or maybe turn around, he found the human, with strong arms wrapped around his slender frame, push him forward while caught in an embrace.  
  
“Ziyi,” the mer whined under his breath, turning his head to send a frantic glimpse from the heir over to his family, unknowingly digging his nails into pale skin. “This is-”  
  
“I know,” the inky haired said gentle, “Your father. Shouldn’t you introduce me?” A question that was so simple, yet sent the seaborne into a sputter that lasted long enough that they were already at the edge of water licking against stone when they stopped.  
  
Zhengting was well aware this was the moment this requested introduction should take place, except before he had even as much as opened his mouth, already he found the human down on one knee in front of him. It was the sort of situation where he felt as if he was missing something essential, the profound human knowledge still lacking but the tension of the people surrounding them seemed to steadily rise, even his parents’ gazes he sensed on himself felt somewhat mocking. “Ziyi, what-”  
  
“Theo,” the prince interrupted him, unlike the usual manners shown, and it served well in shutting Zhengting up almost instantly, “Since that day you were saving me from drowning, I knew that if I ever saw you again, I shouldn’t let you escape. You still did, because your heart is just too big for this world. But you returned and this time I don’t plan to let you go so, Theo, will you accept my hand in marriage?”

  


(Somewhere in the back he was quite certain he heard his father snort at that and then, in their native tongue because the King had never had interest in learning the human language, asked his mother, “Does this human know that we aren’t monogamous?”)

**Author's Note:**

> Comments are highly appreciated but if you don't wanna do that, send me your opinions on [curiouscat](https://curiouscat.me/dadting) or anticipate rants about future works on [twitter](https://twitter.com/zhengjunist)
> 
> Now, enjoy a bunch of mentions as I vaaaaaaguely check for typos:
> 
> If someone is upset I made Linkai a crab - I'm sorry? I realized waaaay too late I could've made him Ziyi's younger brother (based on surnames) but when I did, I no longer wanted to rewrite any of it, I was already so confused because **why** did I make all of Yuehua one literal family**????**
> 
> Y'all also don't realize the struggle of coming up with tail colors for so many people, it was a struggle and I hated it and I definitely don't know quite enough names of colors in English to describe these well but, hey, what's reading without some creativity? Nearly as much of a struggle as is describing so many people in one story 
> 
> I also really have no idea how vocal chords and vocalization and stuff work but I needed some explanation to explain why Zhengting was mute when I had no interest in writing the Ursula of the story so if anyone of you knows better, please don't scold me nor take it to heart, I had to improvise?
> 
> There's also a fun anecdote towards my increased mention of sharks: during my writing tournament, I had visited a friend and asked her for advice and it all came down to "does someone get eaten by sharks?" spoiler: no, but it stuck in my mind so I used them a lot more  
at the same time, I had funnily researched heart facts of dolphins or whales to figure out about Zhengting's (the reason as to why I pointed out his low heartrate at times) and during that I learned that they become territorial during mating cycles, which Gems judged me for when telling her - very unjustified! but, hey, fish and seaborne mammals are often times polygamous as it seems so have fun @ Ziyi
> 
> Let's not forget: [I blame Joey](https://twitter.com/wangziyee/status/1153264573392314368) \- part 2  
Why I was so keen on having Zhengting run around without pants remains another mystery though 
> 
> And yes, Ziyi bought a necklace at the market and it was given to Zhengting sooner or later
> 
> But while writing, I actually realized - I have so little scenes with Zhengting and Ziyi? but then I read over it now and - there's still a lot? are there? are there not? I have no idea
> 
> Let's give it up for Meiqi though because she's a queen and since I recently watched her Step Up movie, it also gave inspiration to me pitching Sungjoo and Yixuan against each other in that one scene (whoops?)


End file.
